Where will you most easily find a maelstrom?
The word maelstrom is likely to be used today to describe a bustling office, downtown traffic or hurricane winds. Turbulence, chaos, bustle and similar notions are linked to a maelstrom.
Originally, however, way back in the mid 1500’s, it had a specific meaning which put it on the map, so to speak. The Dutch cartographer (map maker) Mercator, who has given us today’s commonly used map, the Mercator Projection, located a specific maelstrom off the northwest coast of Norway.
So, where will you most easily find a maelstrom? On an ancient Dutch map. Well, you might be lucky to ever find one anywhere else, since they are hardly common.
A maelstrom is a huge whirlpool. It comes from the linking of grinding/swirling and stream or waters. Grinding, swirling waters make a maelstrom.
Movie-goers will most easily find a maelstrom in the third Pirates of the Caribbean movie. Computer animation creates a vast maelstrom, even called such by the sailor who first spots it. So if you’d like to get the sense for a maelstrom in action get to your nearest video shop.
Because of the upheaval and destruction caused by a maelstrom it becomes an appropriate metaphor for intense activity and swirling destruction.
May your life be spared the maelstroms of nature, society and personal upheaval.
Logophile – Afflatus
From whom would one normally expect an afflatus?
Afflatus comes from a root which means wind or breath. In centuries past much was made of the notion of breath – even back to the Greek word for spirit being pneuma – breath. Similarly the word ‘inspire’ comes from a root that means ‘to breath upon’.
And where does the most powerful breath come from? Where does the greatest inspiration originate? The breath of God has always been regarded as the source of true inspiration. And so it is with an afflatus. It is an inspiration, resulting from being breathed upon by God.
One dictionary definition for afflatus is: divine communication of knowledge
Now, in common usage, the term afflatus has been secularised to simply mean personal inspiration, as if ideas came from within a person. A poet’s afflatus may be seen as his own personal gifting to perceive and convey notions. But the place we would normally expect an afflatus is from God, Himself.
Example: Peter the fisherman, disciple of Jesus Christ, once declared that Jesus is the messiah they were all expecting and also the Son of God. Jesus’ response was to declare that Peter had an afflatus, although He did not use that terminology. Jesus said, Flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, by My Father in Heaven revealed this to you (Matthew 16:17).
May the pneuma of God blow on you, by His Holy Spirit, to inspire you, so you enjoy a daily afflatus and have much divine revelation to guide and empower you in the purposes of God.
Logophile – Verdant Vesture
What colour is a verdant vesture?
It’s the same colour as a verdant pasture and a verdant forest. Verdant ultimately derives from the Latin word viridis, which means “green”.
So a ‘verdant vesture’ is a garment of green colour.
Because vegetation is green the word verdant has taken on the meaning of vegetation. Verdant fields may mean they are green or that they are lush with vegetation. Hence we sometimes see people talk about the verdant greenery, or the verdant, green jungle undergrowth. In such cases the sense of lush vegetation has displaced the notion of ‘green’ and so the word ‘green’ is also inserted.
The Irish, at least those who aren’t Orange, spend at least one day of the year clad in verdant array. The Irish wear green to celebrate St Patrick’s Day.
Logophile – A spot test
How good is your command of English words?
Here are a few questions about words which you have probably heard. Do you know what the words mean or where they come from? Answer all the questions before checking your answers. Note your answers. I will post the answers, one each day for a week – so you will have reviewed them all in a week’s time. If I have piqued your interest to do your own word searching that’s fine too.
What colour is a verdant vesture?
From whom would one normally expect an afflatus?
To what does halcyon best refer?
Which sense identifies what is canorous?
Where will you most easily find a maelstrom?
Where is xenophobia normally directed?
Which substance is behind the word aplomb?
Be sure to get the answers sent to you by clicking the link on the lower left of the blog page, to get these posts sent to you by email.
Logophile Mania – Fighting Words
Having introduced you to my interest in words I now offer a rather over-the-top collection of verbal bric-a-brac. The only purpose is to put a few lesser known words into a sentence of two in the hope of getting something of a grip on the terms themselves.
For the sport of it, see how many words you would not need to look up to be sure to use them correctly.
Here ’tis:
“Though I am a crapulous dilettante and ignorant parvenu with no virtu, I will with alacrity provide munificent titivation to this apothegm (or is it a pablum?) with some salutary simulacrum of the ululation of an aubade.
Though this is outside my métier please do not be a hortatory martinet but show benignant acceptance of my rebarbative panoply of fustian. If you, as a cognoscente, deny me fulsome acclaim and force me to rusticate in the desuetude of my métier I will seek equipoise through aspersions cast at your turgid and otiose persona. I will attack your cupidity with every appurtenance at my disposal. I will not derogate from this execrable objective until I remove every patina around you and expose you as a harridan, and defenestrate your reputation with edacious cupidity.”