The word race is ubiquitously known throughout the Western world, particularly the United States. Most people recognize that humans are classified by a social construct that is mistakenly seen as biological (although many people are not aware of this misconception). A good number of people recognize the inequities members of…

As an etymologist, I tend to frame everything through a linguistic lens. It is hard for me to simply take a word at face value because I know that nine times out of ten, the word’s modern-day understanding differs from its original meaning (connotation vs. denotation). And while some may…

Matriarchy comes from the Latin mater meaning mother (the genitive form being matris) and the Greek arkhien meaning “to rule”. A matriarchal system is one in which women, specifically mothers, rule or lead, particularly in familial, tribal, community, organizational, and societal structures. In a matriarchal system, descedancy is traced through…

As with any major historical event or phenomenon, life during COVID calls for new terms. For the majority of Americans, “sheltering-in-place” and “social distancing” are novel experiences that no pre-existing term can describe. So naturally, the English language has experienced a deluge of neologisms during the pandemic. …

By B. Selah Lee-Bey Note: This piece was originally published on August 24, 2018 on DiversePatriots.com Ask any native Washingtonian what’s happening in DC, and the first thing they’ll say is gentrification. Their families and friends are being pushed out of the homes they have called home for generations. Ask…

Blackfishing: a trend in which non-white people alter their appearance in order to present themselves as Black. (Source: theweek.co) The setting is virtual debate camp. The question was what is something new you have tried during the stay at home order? I was expecting responses like “catching up on my…

Spinster was originally a female spinner of thread (14th century); it became a legal designation of an unmarried woman, as unmarried women were expected to sit home and spin fibers into thread. By the 18th century, it became a pejorative for any unmarried woman past a certain age. Reading Helen…

What do the following word pairs have in common: attitude and aptitude; advent and adventure; busy and business; and apparently, people’s personal favorite mourning and morning? The words in the pairings have a similar look and sound. Attitude and aptitude only differ by one letter. Advent and adventure share a…

“A riot is the language of the unheard. What is it that America has failed to hear?” - Martin Luther King Jr. The Other America I came across this quotation several times on Tuesday after the wave of protests and riots throughout America against police brutality, racism, and the killing…