Holi-dazed: 2020 words of the year, and wishing we could forget them
Published Dec 20, 2020 12:07 am
HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRIPE-VINE
Philip Cu Unjieng
(Part 1)
When the dictionaries of the world began announcing their 2020 Word of the Year; Collins Dictionary chose “lockdown,” while the Oxford English Dictionary gamely admitted that this was such an unusual year that rather than limit it to one word, they announced their “words of an unprecedented year.” And perhaps that really does sum up the topsy-turvy nature of what we’ve all undergone during this pandemic year – for just as the virus spread to all corners of the world, a whole host of words and terms went “viral” in a manner that I only wish never happened.
If “Climate Emergency” emerged as OED’s Word of the Year in 2019, it turns out it was just a mild harbinger of what was in store for us in this Year of the Nakakabu-Rat. For just as 2019’s words were acknowledging the ills and problems that became of paramount relevance in that year, this 2020 saw a host of words that collectively helped us try to make some sense of the complete upheaval that entered our lives, and wreaked havoc with our equilibriums.
And while climate and emergency are two words that put together don’t take a weather expert or meteorological genius to decipher or understand, the truly bizarre thing about 2020 is how words and terms normally confined to the esoteric vernacular of scientists and epidemiologists became part of our everyday conversation. That’s truly unusual, and it just proves how the year left us holi-dazed!
As the OED reported, during the first quarter, the virus was being referred to as coronavirus; but in no time at all, COVID-19 was outperforming corona. The word “pandemic” had a 57,000% upsurge in usage, while “following the science” was up 1,000%. The scientific terms that enjoyed common usage included “flatten the curve,” “community transmission,” “herd immunity,” and “R number,” which refers to the rate of reproduction of the virus. All of a sudden, everyone and their cousin were armchair epidemiologists, spouting medical science jargon like they truly understood it.
As our daily lives and work habits evolved under the corona shadow, the terms “work from home” and “workation” went up 500%. Also hitting the 500% mark-up was the word “unmute,” which should bring a smile to anyone who had to meet online. “Zoom” also zoomed up in usage, which should come as no surprise. While Google Meet and Microsoft Teams may have been the staples for most corporate communication needs, Zoom was by far the more accessible and popular app.
In the West, “essential workers” enjoyed immense popular usage, but here in the Philippine context, we called them “front-liners.” It’s like how “face mask” was a global phenomenon and even became a political issue during the recent US presidential elections; but “face shield” was reserved for particular countries, such as ours.
But speaking of masks and shields, what I find truly abhorrent is how whenever I step out, I see so many complying with the regulations by having both mask and shield, but walking around with the mask below their chins, and shields worn over their heads. At that point, I want to make them all “batok” and ask why they bother at all. Logically, I’d say the mask is more so you won’t spread droplets, while the shield protects you from possibly getting the droplets of others on you – so why negate their protection when you have them both on you, by wearing them in such a cavalier manner?
Last week’s spike in local COVID cases should be more than enough reason to stop being complacent; and follow the use of these protective items properly and diligently when in public. At SM Malls, was happy to see security guards stopping mall goers to use their masks and shields the right way.
Here in the Philippines, I would include the following to the “Pinoy Addendum to Words of 2020.” First off, I’d nominate “Community Quarantine,” “Plantita,” and “Sushi Bake.” And if you really want to go month to month, there was that period when “Legislative Franchise” became the it-term, while the furor over the non-renewal of the franchise, and partial closure, of ABS-CBN, raged. Going into micro-detail, I’d even make mention of how, for one glorious day, “Ostrich” was the Word of the Day, providing some comic-relief to the dreariness of the day-to-day sameness of our ECQ.
And I know it’s a Filipino trait to be so forgiving and forgetful; but I do wonder what happened to that ostrich. That has to be considered an exotic animal/pet – you can’t just call it an overgrown rooster or chicken; so were there any subdivision regulations being violated by its owner? Or was it being maintained for the owner’s Thanksgiving dinner, as something more unusual than your regular turkey? Hmmm....
So sure, these are the words of this miserable year; but I’m praying that in two to three years time, they’ll be words that we’ve forgotten about due to abrupt lack of usage. That with relief, we can effectively erase them from our memory banks. For let’s face it, these words and terms had practically no meaning or relevance for most of us, this same time last year – a time when Ignorance was truly Bliss.
Philip Cu Unjieng
(Part 1)
When the dictionaries of the world began announcing their 2020 Word of the Year; Collins Dictionary chose “lockdown,” while the Oxford English Dictionary gamely admitted that this was such an unusual year that rather than limit it to one word, they announced their “words of an unprecedented year.” And perhaps that really does sum up the topsy-turvy nature of what we’ve all undergone during this pandemic year – for just as the virus spread to all corners of the world, a whole host of words and terms went “viral” in a manner that I only wish never happened.
If “Climate Emergency” emerged as OED’s Word of the Year in 2019, it turns out it was just a mild harbinger of what was in store for us in this Year of the Nakakabu-Rat. For just as 2019’s words were acknowledging the ills and problems that became of paramount relevance in that year, this 2020 saw a host of words that collectively helped us try to make some sense of the complete upheaval that entered our lives, and wreaked havoc with our equilibriums.
And while climate and emergency are two words that put together don’t take a weather expert or meteorological genius to decipher or understand, the truly bizarre thing about 2020 is how words and terms normally confined to the esoteric vernacular of scientists and epidemiologists became part of our everyday conversation. That’s truly unusual, and it just proves how the year left us holi-dazed!
As the OED reported, during the first quarter, the virus was being referred to as coronavirus; but in no time at all, COVID-19 was outperforming corona. The word “pandemic” had a 57,000% upsurge in usage, while “following the science” was up 1,000%. The scientific terms that enjoyed common usage included “flatten the curve,” “community transmission,” “herd immunity,” and “R number,” which refers to the rate of reproduction of the virus. All of a sudden, everyone and their cousin were armchair epidemiologists, spouting medical science jargon like they truly understood it.
As our daily lives and work habits evolved under the corona shadow, the terms “work from home” and “workation” went up 500%. Also hitting the 500% mark-up was the word “unmute,” which should bring a smile to anyone who had to meet online. “Zoom” also zoomed up in usage, which should come as no surprise. While Google Meet and Microsoft Teams may have been the staples for most corporate communication needs, Zoom was by far the more accessible and popular app.
In the West, “essential workers” enjoyed immense popular usage, but here in the Philippine context, we called them “front-liners.” It’s like how “face mask” was a global phenomenon and even became a political issue during the recent US presidential elections; but “face shield” was reserved for particular countries, such as ours.
But speaking of masks and shields, what I find truly abhorrent is how whenever I step out, I see so many complying with the regulations by having both mask and shield, but walking around with the mask below their chins, and shields worn over their heads. At that point, I want to make them all “batok” and ask why they bother at all. Logically, I’d say the mask is more so you won’t spread droplets, while the shield protects you from possibly getting the droplets of others on you – so why negate their protection when you have them both on you, by wearing them in such a cavalier manner?
Last week’s spike in local COVID cases should be more than enough reason to stop being complacent; and follow the use of these protective items properly and diligently when in public. At SM Malls, was happy to see security guards stopping mall goers to use their masks and shields the right way.
Here in the Philippines, I would include the following to the “Pinoy Addendum to Words of 2020.” First off, I’d nominate “Community Quarantine,” “Plantita,” and “Sushi Bake.” And if you really want to go month to month, there was that period when “Legislative Franchise” became the it-term, while the furor over the non-renewal of the franchise, and partial closure, of ABS-CBN, raged. Going into micro-detail, I’d even make mention of how, for one glorious day, “Ostrich” was the Word of the Day, providing some comic-relief to the dreariness of the day-to-day sameness of our ECQ.
And I know it’s a Filipino trait to be so forgiving and forgetful; but I do wonder what happened to that ostrich. That has to be considered an exotic animal/pet – you can’t just call it an overgrown rooster or chicken; so were there any subdivision regulations being violated by its owner? Or was it being maintained for the owner’s Thanksgiving dinner, as something more unusual than your regular turkey? Hmmm....
So sure, these are the words of this miserable year; but I’m praying that in two to three years time, they’ll be words that we’ve forgotten about due to abrupt lack of usage. That with relief, we can effectively erase them from our memory banks. For let’s face it, these words and terms had practically no meaning or relevance for most of us, this same time last year – a time when Ignorance was truly Bliss.