Words, things & ideas posted as they’re discovered …

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Saki

“Hector Hugh Munro (18 December 1870 – 14 November 1916), popularly known by his pen name Saki and also frequently as H. H. Munro, was a British writer whose witty, mischievous and sometimes macabre stories satirize Edwardian society and culture. He is considered by English teachers and scholars a master of the short story and is often compared to O. Henry and Dorothy Parker. Influenced by Oscar Wilde, Lewis Carroll and Rudyard Kipling, Munro himself influenced A. A. Milne, Noël Coward and P. G. Wodehouse” (Wikipedia).

I can’t believe I haven’t heard of him before! He sounds great. Apparently he was killed in the WW1 trenches by a German sniper, and his last words were “Put that bloody cigarette out!”

Cited as an influence in a short author’s preface to Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

My writing is inspired by (and looks breathtakingly jejune next to) the works of Jerome K. Jerome, P. G. Wodehouse, Saki, Dickens, Thackeray, and, of course, the inimitable Jane Austen.

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pelerine

“a woman’s cape of lace or silk with pointed ends at the centre front, popular in the 19th century” (Oxford Languages)

“The word comes from the French “pèlerine” (pilgrim) and is perhaps a reference to the small capes worn by many of the women in Jean-Antoine Watteau’s 1717 painting Pilgrimage to Cythera” (Wikipedia).

Discovered in Chapter 36 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

Rose bushes, charmed to resist the cold, dripped with icicles that fixed the light into frozen glints. The roses themselves looked even more opulent than usual under their pelerines of snow. Heavy heads bent under the weight of it, glowing lustres of ruby or pink or crimson through the white.

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l’appel du vide

“The call of the void is a term used to refer to intrusive thoughts, suicidal ideation , or the urge to engage in self-destructive behaviors during daily life. Examples include thinking about swerving into the oncoming lane while driving, or feeling like jumping off a cliff while standing on top of it” (Wikipedia).

Discovered in Chapter 32 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

> Click to reveal quote – spoilers

And that pull – that gravitational force – l’appel du vide – was falling into love, over and over again.

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Mabon

“The holiday of the autumnal equinox is known variously among neopagans as Mabon, Harvest Home, or Feast of the Ingathering. … It is a neopagan festival of thanksgiving for the fruits of the earth and a recognition of the need to share them to secure the blessings of the Goddess and the Gods during the coming winter months” (Wikipedia).

Discovered in Chapter 32 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

… anyway – Mabon came and went and I lost the moment.

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apotropaic

“supposedly having the power to avert evil influences or bad luck” (Oxford Languages)

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Rúnatal

“Hávamál, ‘Words of Hávi [the High One]’, is presented as a single poem in the Codex Regius, a collection of Old Norse poems from the Viking age. A scholarly estimate of Hávamál’s age dates the poem to between 900 and 1000 A.D. The poem, itself a combination of numerous shorter poems, is largely gnomic, presenting advice for living, proper conduct and wisdom. It is considered an important source of Old Norse philosophy. … Following the gnomic “Hávamál proper” comes the Rúnatal, an account of how Odin won the runes, and the Ljóðatal, a list of magic chants or spells” (Wikipedia).

Discovered in Chapter 32 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

She waved her wand and the candles lit themselves again. “It’s an apotropaic syntax. The runes are from the Meginrunar syllabary, but I interpolated prosodics from the Rúnatal. …”

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sapiophile

“A sapiophile is one whose romantic attraction to others is primarily based on intelligence” (Merriam-Webster).

Discovered in Chapter 30 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

> Click to reveal quote – spoilers

He wished that she would slide off the arm rest and fall into his lap. That would be the pinnacle of whatever this was – this sapiophile’s wet dream. Granger in his lap, solving obscure bits of arithmantic exponentiation.

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Samhain

“… a Gaelic festival on 1 November marking the end of the harvest season and beginning of winter or “darker half” of the year. It is also the Irish language name for November. Celebrations begin on the evening of 31 October, since the Celtic day began and ended at sunset. This is about halfway between the autumnal equinox and winter solstice. It is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals along with Imbolc, Bealtaine, and Lughnasa. Historically it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man” (Wikipedia).

Discovered in Chapter 30 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

It was Samhain night. The dead awakened. Souls wandered. Portents glimmered.

The veil between worlds grew thin. Boundaries grew porous. Thresholds disappeared.

Things could span gaps. Things could be between.

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queimada

“Queimada is an alcoholic beverage of Galician tradition. [It] is a punch made from Galician aguardente (orujo from Galicia)–a spirit distilled from the byproducts of winemaking—and made with sugar, lemon or orange peel, and coffee beans. Variations of queimada may include cinnamon or apples. It is traditionally prepared in a hollowed-out pumpkin or a ceramic or clay pot.

Typically, while preparing the punch a spell or incantation is recited, so that special powers are conferred to the queimada and those drinking it. Then the queimada is set alight, and slowly burns as more brandy is added” (Wikipedia).

Discovered in Chapter 30 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

What was Queimada? At first, Draco was convinced that it was made of the same stuff as the lava lamp thingie. It was a flaming punch of some sort, aromatised by citrus peels and coffee beans.

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Borzoi

“The Borzoi or Russian Hunting Sighthound is a Russian breed of hunting dog of sighthound type. It was formerly used for wolf hunting,  and until 1936 was known as the Russian Wolfhound” (Wikipedia).

Discovered in Chapter 30 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

Draco trotted along next to her, a long feathery tail swishing elegantly behind him.

Because, yes. Draco had been Transfigured into a Borzoi.

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Grenadil wood

“This wood is one of the most expensive on the planet. The color of dense, shiny wood varies from red to pure black. Usually, Grenadil is sawn into small logs, leaving a bright yellow sapwood to avoid cracking during prolonged drying. It is mainly used for making musical instruments. However, now it is an endangered species that is classified as a flowering plant and usually grows in the arid regions of Tanzania and Mozambique. To grow into an adult, a tree needs up to 60 years” (Ligno).

Discovered in Chapter 30 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

They packed the Elder Wand, with a silken ribbon around its snapped middle, into a gorgeous case of satin and Grenadil wood.

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borborygmus

“a rumbling or gurgling noise made by the movement of fluid and gas in the intestines” (Oxford Languages)

Discovered in Chapter 30 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

“I don’t suppose your Uncle Snodsbury’s hourglass has any magical properties?”

“Er – sometimes, it gets flatulent.”

Granger gasped out a cackle, then attempted to find her dignity again. “Really.”

“It’s true.”

“Right. Well, unless the Marquis has a specific interest in borborygmus, I don’t think that will be of much use.”

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farouche

“1. wild; 2. marked by shyness and lack of social graces” (Merriam-Webster)

Discovered in Chapter 29 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love:

I think it’s the second definition that applies here?

> Click to reveal quote – spoilers

He was too selfish. He was too addicted. He wanted to continue this ongoing, endlessly careful, farouche sort of dance. Flirting that pretended not to be. Lapses that were quickly blamed on alcohol and swept under the rug.

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vagueblog

To vagueblog is to publish deliberately mysterious statements on one’s social media account or blog. See also vaguebook (Facebook) and vaguepost. Related term: subtweet. Thanks to Wiktionary for the information.

Discovered in Chapter 29 of Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Falling in Love, in a caption (“Draco vagueblogs at Hermione”) to the epigraph (a screenshot of some vagueblogs).

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the Voynich manuscript

A very rare 15th century book written in a cryptic language, or perhaps pseudo-language? It remains undeciphered.

Discovered in Chapter 9 of Death at Morning House by Maureen Johnson:

Then I switched over and started scrolling through Akilah’s feed. I did this most nights. Wiggle that tooth. Salt that wound. Make sure it hurts. I knew every photo on there by heart, and I studied new ones like they were the Voynich manuscript.

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Image by Наталия Когут used in accordance with the terms of the Pixabay content licence.