“Semper Fidelis” And Semantic Symbiosis

The Word Collector — part 12

This is the latest in a series of articles about new words and phrases collected during intrepid expeditions into the deep, dark, unexplored upper reaches of the literary wilderness, which is something of a hobby, and more productive than watching “Homeland” on Netflix again. Speaking of which, the first specimen comes from that very series about the world of American spycraft:

Semper fidelis — this is the Latin motto of the U.S Marine Corps, meaning “always loyal/faithful”, sometimes abbreviated to “semper fi”. If you served in the forces, or are a fan of war movies, you will be aware that it often accompanied by the less cultural and slightly alarming “Hooah”, in unison and at volume, which is one of those phrases of which the origin already seems uncertain, though it is most widely taken to mean “heard, understood, acknowledged” as in HUA.

As a former student of languages, including Latin, I sort of knew the semper fidelis phrase already but as so often at my age, needed reminding.

It is amazing how many Latin phrases still permeate the English language, such as caveat emptor (loved by estate agents when you discover a serious defect in the house you have just bought, meaning “let the buyer beware”), pro bono (often used when a lawyer takes on a case for free/good which makes a rare change) and carpe diem (“seize the day” since after 60 you never know how many more you are going to get!).

The Latin language is still widely used in a variety of professions including medicine, law and botany, and for some reason, Latin mottos are particularly loved by the armed forces, with a couple of lists for the military mavens available on the links below:

pilaster — this word cropped up in the book “All The Light We Cannot See” by Anthony Doerr which I am currently reading. In classical architecture, a pilaster is an architectural element used to give the appearance of a supporting column and to articulate the extent of the wall, with only an ornamental function. It consists of a flat surface raised from the main wall surface, usually treated as though it were a column, with a capital at the top, a plinth (base) at the bottom, and various other column elements. In contrast to a pilaster, an engaged column or buttress can support the structure of a wall and roof above. In human anatomy, a pilaster is a ridge that extends vertically across the femur, which is unique to modern humans. Its structural function is unclear, as I am even after reading these definitions.

shtetl — this word cropped in an excellent Radio 4 podcast series about the tragic history of the Warsaw ghetto during World War Two. A shtetl or shtetel is a Yiddish term for the small towns with predominantly Ashkenazi Jewish populations which existed in Eastern Europe before the Holocaust.

petrichor — the pleasant, earthy smell that accompanies the first rain after a dry spell, and is caused by the release of oils from plants into the air.

limerence — means the state of being infatuated or obsessed with another person, typically characterised by intense emotions and fantasies about the object of desire.

sonder (noun) — means the realisation that each random passer-by has a complex life story as intricate and meaningful as one’s own, often accompanied by a sense of connection or empathy with others.

sophistry — the use of clever but false arguments, especially with the intention of deceiving.

Semantic symbiosis

Since as well as loving language, words and phrases, I have an interest in environmental issues, I was interested to see this short feature on the BBC website, about how saving languages which are in danger of dying out due to our global cultural homogenisation, has a link to the need to protect biodiversity, with some remarkable over-laps between these two strands of conservation:

As always, thank you for reading.

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