Monday, December 17, 2007

Neologisms w/o Origins

If you're at all an avid fan of the Simpsons, or possibly even if you aren't, you're familiar with the words "cromulent" and "embiggens." I'd like us to coin some new words. The way I'd like us to do it is more like cromulent and less like embiggens. Embiggens makes some sense. It sounds like it means to engage bigness, to ennoble...those sorts of things. Cromulent sounds right too, but there isn't a good reason for it. Maybe it is a carry over from salient? Hardly.

Point is, we make new words all the time. But all too often they are corruptions or modifications to existing words, they use latinate roots or some relationality to a thing that already exists. I want us out there forging new territory. Take "neologism" for example. It just means new word. Neo...logos. Greek, not Latin, but you get the point. Boring. New words should be called something cool, something that feels new. I, however, am not ready to be one to do the naming. Go ahead and try it out.

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