Vocabulary II

Ubiquitous

Yesterday marked the first day of classes, or I should say, class. At once coddling us and encouraging us to delve into our host countries, USC will not allow exchange students to take more than three courses a semester. Moreover, those three courses are taken pass/fail, meaning that my GPA remains frozen during my time abroad and can only be affected should I outright fail my courses here. Thus, I began my least demanding college semester to date.

My schedule is something of a dream with only one class period Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. On Wednesday, I have two. Yesterday began the semester with Introduction to Gaelic Language and Culture in which I'll be learning the basics of Scottish Gaelic and the cultural implications thereof. Today it was The Supernatural World, a look at the supernatural history of Scotland and current manifestations of that riveting history. As you can certainly see, my course load is particularly Scottish in nature--I figured when in Edinburgh, right? In this same vein, I learned my first Gaelic word today, Alba, the word for Scotland. As anyone (or rather, Maman and Aunt Linda, my fellow Sassenachs [which I also learned should be spelled Sasannach, incidentally]) would expect, however, this straightforward spelling does not lend itself to a straightforward pronunciation. No, indeed, Alba is pronounced Al-uh-puh--learning Gaelic is like being trusted with some great literary secret.

Tomorrow's class, East Central Africa, has a decidedly un-Scottish bent. Although I have yet to experience a lecture or meet the professor, I have been quite impressed with the reading material thus far. As I said to Evan last night, it was anthropologically inspiring.

To segue, said reading provided the fodder for this post. Trust anthropologists to use the most cutting-edge lingo (note sarcasm here). Without further ado:

abstruse--hard to understand; recondite; esoteric.

acephalus--a headless fetus.

ad hoc--for the special purpose or end presently under consideration.

ameliorate--to make or become better, more bearable, or more satisfactory; improve.

apotheosis--the elevation or exaltation of a person to the rank of a god.

apotropaic--intended to ward off evil.

apposite--suitable; well-adapted; pertinent; relevant; apt.

argonaut--a person in quest of something dangerous but rewarding; adventurer.

aver--to assert or affirm with confidence; declare in a positive or peremptory manner.

coeval--of the same age, date, or duration; equally old.

collude--to act together through a secret understanding, esp. with evil or harmful intent.

compendium--a brief treatment or account of a subject, esp. an extensive subject; concise treatise.

concomitant--existing or occurring with something else, often in a lesser way; accompanying; concurrent.

convivial--friendly; agreeable.

epigraph--an inscription, esp. on a building, statue, or the like.

epistemology--a branch of philosophy that investigates the origin, nature, methods, and limits of human knowledge.

exigency--the need, demand, or requirement intrinsic to a circumstance, condition, etc.

extant--in existence; still existing; not destroyed or lost.

filial--noting or having the relation of a child to a parent.

glazier--a person who fits windows or the like with glass or panes of glass.

immortelle--an everlasting plant or flower, esp.

impetus--a moving force; impulse; stimulus.

impute--to attribute or ascribe.

interlocutor--a person who takes part in a conversation or dialogue.

lineament--a feature or detail of a face, body, or figure, considered with respect to its outline or contour.

milieu--surroundings, esp. of a social or cultural nature.

monograph--a highly detailed and thoroughly documented study or paper written about a limited area of a subject or field of inquiry.

nexus--a means of connection; tie; link.

onomastic--of or pertaining to proper names.

opprobrium--the disgrace or the reproach incurred by conduct considered outrageously shameful; infamy.

predilection--a tendency to think favorably of something in particular; partiality; preference.

prognosticate--to forecast or predict (something future) from present indications or signs; prophesy.

rubicon--(idiomatic) cross or pass the Rubicon, to take a decisive, irrevocable step.

ubiquitous--existing or being everywhere, esp. at the same time; omnipresent.