Legends in language

In an effort to go online to mark the new millennium as the most exhaustive granary of words, the publishers of the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) have issued a worldwide appeal to contribute words. It is only natural that in an age when the English language is being used discriminately and indiscriminately the world over, the OED is jettisoning its conservative image. There will, undoubtedly, be no shortage of contributions towards this mother of all lexicons.

But then the English language has always been open to adapting words and expressions from any language and realm. A little etymological pursuit will enable us to appreciate that it is this innate quality of adapting words and expressions from outside that has made English such a vibrant language.

Moreover, such a pursuit will not only be interesting but rewarding as well since in vocabulary buildingthe problem is not so much finding new words or even finding out what they mean. The problem is to remember them, to fix them permanently in your mind through a connecting chord.

Among all its lenders, English is perhaps most indebted to Greek and Roman myths. Forgotten myths come alive in innumerable words and expressions daily through the print and electronic media. To begin with, divinity has a fair share of contributions. Nemesis was the Greek goddess of retribution. So nemesis means an avenger or punisher and often the punishment itself. Greek sea-god Proteus could take various shapes. Hence protean means versatile, easily and quickly changing. A bacchanal feast is one which is given to much drinking and merry-making since Bacchus was the Greek god of wine.

Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers, signifies an assemblage of vegetable species of a region or an age. Fauna comes from Faun, a Roman rural deity who protected shepherds and their herds. Fauna is thus an assemblage of animal species in a region.The words volcano and vulcanic have been borrowed from Vulcan, the Roman god of metal-working, volcano being the chimney of his workshop.

Saturn, the father of Jupiter, was a jovial god. The Romans looked upon the era of his rule as a golden age. Saturnalia, the feast celebrating his worship, were wild and unrestrained. Saturnalia, used as a singular noun, therefore, means an unrestrained revelry, a wild tumultuous celebration almost like a bacchanal feast.

Now a little about kings and commoners. The word narcissism comes from Narcissus, a handsome youth who pined away for love of himself. Narcissism hence means an excessive valuation of the self. Stentor, the Greek herald in Trojan War, has given the word stentorian, meaning bellowing, loud-voiced as Stentor’s voice could be heard all over the Grecian camp.

Terpischore was the muse of the choral song and dance, so terpischorean relates to song or dance. Adonis, an extremely handsome youth, was beloved of Aphrodite, the goddess of love. His name,therefore, describes a very handsome man. As Amazons were female warriors, an amazon is a strong woman.

Sisyphus, the king of Corinth, was condemned in the underworld to roll uphill a huge stone which always rolled down again when it reached the top. So, sisyphean refers to an endless, fruitless toil.

Pyrrhus was the king of Epirus. When he won a costly war against the Romans he exclaimed: "An-other such victory and we are lost." A pyrrhic victory is, therefore, gained at a debilitating cost. Cassandra, the daughter of Priam, the king of Troy, had se-en the doom of Troy. Thus, in modern usage, Cassandra refers to a pessimistic prophet.

Achilles’ heel, a popular metaphor for a single vulnerable point in an otherwise strong position, refers to the Homeric hero Achilles. His mother made him invulnerable by dripping him in the river Styx. But in doing so she held him by one heel which was not immersed and thus remained vulnerable. Well, spelling proves to be an Achilles’ heel of many a bright student.