Doy-gee!
While this may sound like some sort of neologism meant to convey, say, surprise or delight, it is actually the pronunciation of:
Duodji.
Oh, gee …
Don’t worry if you’re coming up empty on definitions because duodji isn’t an English word–not even close. It actually hails from a remote group of nomadic people called the Sámi who herd reindeer across the far northern reaches of Scandinavia.
Photo of Sami family at spring (Easter) celebration by Mortsan via Wikimedia Commons
Duodji refers to any number of handcrafted items made by the Sámi that are both aesthetically beautiful and useful (clothing, accessories, household items, and tools). Traditionally, duodji crafts were divided into men’s and women’s work. Men used mostly wood and antlers as well as other bones from reindeer when crafting items like this salt cellar:
Photo by Christopher Forster via Wikimedia Commons
Women incorporated leather and fur in elaborately stitched items like these marvelous mittens:
Photo by Thorguds, SaamiBlog.blogspot.com via Wikimedia Commons
Traditional colors incorporated in duodji are red, green, blue and yellow:
Photo by Duodjiinfo via Wikimedia Commons
Photo by Christopher Forster via Wikimedia Commons
“Duodji represents cultural continuity with our ancestors,” explains Ellen Marie Jensen, author of We Stopped Forgetting. “There are creative and functional adaptations over time, and the individual duojar has room for individual creative expression. Duodji is both functional and beautiful.”
Doy-gee, I surely agree.
Neologism [nee-ol-uh-jiz-uhm] is an old term (c. 1790) that means a new one.
Properly defined, it refers to “a newly coined word or expression.”
This, of course, could also be interpreted as noodle-brained nonsense by literature’s most literate logophiles.
But should it?
While we English enthusiasts are quick to note made-up words in the course of conversation,
(“I like to squirgle a little aloe vera gel after brushing my teeth.”)
the fact that we can glean their meaning from context suggests that these words carry the same clout as their established, dictionary-approved counterparts.
“Do not be afraid to make up your own words. English teachers, dictionary publishers, and that uptight guy two cubicles over who always complains about the microwave being dirty, they will all tell you that you can’t. They will bring out the dictionary and show you that the word isn’t there—therefore it doesn’t exist. Don’t fall for this,” urges blogger Andrew Kaufman of The Guardian. “It is easy to forget there was a time before dictionaries, when everything was less defined and words had a little more wiggle room. This kept the English language alive. Dictionaries turned the language from a house that we are all free to renovate into a museum we are only allowed to look at. So go ahead, step over that velvet rope, make up your own words. Remember that somebody, a long time ago, made up every single word in this sentence.”
Liberating perspective, isn’t it?
Building momentum within this mounting rhetorical revolution, lexicographer Erin McKean is reshaping how we interact with language. In her talk from TEDYouth, below, McKean emboldens us to embrace our neologistic urges.
Welcome New Sisters! (click for current roster)
Merit Badge Awardees (click for latest awards)
My featured Merit Badge Awardee of the Week is … CJ Armstrong!!!
CJ Armstrong (ceejay48, #665) has received a certificate of achievement in Stitching & Crafting for earning an Expert Level Quilling Merit Badge!
“I completed this quilling project using tight circles, loose circles, teardrops, marquise, loose scroll, scroll variations and scroll stretches in a floral 3-D frameable “picture.”
Time investment was approximately nine hours. I am pleased with the outcome of this project. I find quilling to be a bit tedious but I do like the end result.”
Buy props used in MaryJane’s books and magazine!
5% of profits will benefit www.firstbook.org, a non-profit that provides new books to children from low-income families throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Here’s how:
MaryJane will post a photo and a description of a prop and its cost along with a few details as to its condition here: https://shop.maryjanesfarm.org/MaryJanesCurations. It’s a playful way to be the new owner of a little bit of farm herstory.
