Foreign languages can be a linguistic gold mine. French is an especially fertile ground in terms of words dealing with exclusion and differences in class. Latin terms frequently are used in legal documents.
I Knew There Had to Be a Word for That
Other languages have described concepts that have no accompanying word in English.
1. afturbatapika: Icelandic term for an unwed girl who has had a child which, in turn, has since been forgotten, with the result that the girl is considered to be a virgin again.
2. de rigueur: Strictly required, as by etiquette, usage, or fashion.
"In my 25 years of car ownership, I have been the proud owner of exactly two Jeep products, each a "luxurious," mid-80s, full-sized Grand Wagoneer, each painted a putrid shade like Champagne Dust (a filthy gold) or Brandied Raisin (a purple-skewing brown), and both with the de rigueurfake wood paneling along their flanks."
"In the last 12 months, the members have released nine free albums and mixtapes via Odd Future's Tumblr, the de rigueurblog platform of the young creative class."
3. esprit d'escalier: a retort/remark that occurs to a person after the opportunity to make it has passed. The original French phrase alludes to a remark that occurs to the speaker after the opportunity to make it and once he is on the stairs. Afterwit. Also treppenwitz: German for "staircase wit."
"Lévy embarks on a long excursion into what Diderot may have been the first to call l'espritd'escalier, all the fine rejoinders that occur to one only when one is descending the stairs and it's just too late."
4. Ilungu: (Tshiluba) person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first time, to tolerate it a second time, but never forgive the third time.
5. kiasu: competitive behavior prompted by a fear of losing, especially in unusual contexts. From Hokkein, Chinese dialect.
"Kiasu parents impose strict study laws on their children in elementary school to ensure that they are at the top of their graduating class and score highest in their future A-levels. A kiasueater will take too much food from a buffet for fear that there will be none left later."
6. laolaiqiao: describes an oldster who affects the habits of youth to appear trendy. Mandarin Chinese term which can mean either "old people doing young things that even young people would never do" or "to become more charming with age."
7. mojo: a magic charm or spell.
"In 2005, the entertaining terror-in-the-skies thriller 'Red Eye'indicated that Wes Cravenstill had his horror mojo, a decade or two or three after ' '' and 'The Hills Have Eyes'."
8. mokita: (Papua, New Guinea) the truth that everyone knows but no one discusses. Similar to the Latin tacenda: a thing that should not be mentioned.
"Thomas Donaldson, a professor of legal studies and business ethics, used a word from Papua New Guinea to describe the failings that led to this mess: mokita, meaning truth everyone knows about but agrees not to discuss. When it came to many of the problems that have tripped up Fannie and Freddie and so many others, there was mokita."
9. mudita: contentment resulting from another person's success. This concept originated in Buddhism and is an antonym to schadenfreude, see below.
YOU ARE READING
The Ivy League Dictionary
Non-FictionIn crafting a story, authors use words as painters use their color palette. The more words at their finger tips, the more accurately an author can limn their story. Moreover, words can provide us with a glimpse of the similarities (and difference)...
