READING UPDATE: The Dictionary- Part 33- CÚCUTA – Language Research Service

I am happy to report that I have finished reading my dictionary! This final section not only moved quickly but also provided a few more interesting words than the last few monthly entries have. It’s a big relief to be done with this book. I don’t regret reading it; nor do I regret reading it first.

Another pleasant surprise is that I found out the exact date I started reading the dictionary back in 2014. I went back and read some of my earliest posts, which suggested that I did not start on January 1, 2014. I poked around through some old spreadsheets and discovered that my journey with Merriam & Webster began on January 13, 2014. That means I accomplished my goal of finishing the 1,600-page dictionary in fewer than 1,600 days. I wrapped it up on day 1,596. Close call.

The next steps are to finalize my rating system, assign a rating to the dictionary, and write up a formal review. Stay tuned for that. Until then, here are the final interesting words and items from my journey:

ESKILSTUNA- The –tuna at the end of this Swedish city’s name reminded me of the American version of The Office. ‘Big Tuna’ was Andy’s nickname for Jim. I chuckled when I read this word, and laughs have been few and far between with the dictionary.

KADESH-BARNEA- This is the name of a site referred to in over a dozen verses of the Hebrew Bible but the actual location of it still eludes archaeologists. If the exact location is unknown, then why list it as a bona fide geographic location? Perhaps it’s because enough archaeologists, historians, and anthropologists agree that it must have been a real place. This just struck me as a curious inclusion.

KILAUEA- I hit this word a day or two after this Hawaiian volcano began its current eruptive activity. My in-laws hope to visit Hawaii in July. Hopefully it’s not spewing so much ash at that point that it disrupts air travel to the Big Island.

MOLD- If I lived in this Welsh town, I would either move out or lobby to get the name changed. This brings to light one of my gripes with the Geographic Names section- MW doesn’t list what the names of foreign cities mean in their native language or if the name stems from a specific event, characteristic, or some other meaning. Mold might have a beautiful meaning in Welsh but I don’t know what it means. Thanks for nothing, MW.

NEW QUEBEC CRATER- In all my years as a NASA nerd, I never came across this impacted crater before. Its inclusion in my dictionary surprised me. After investigating, I found that it is a very small impact crater, notable for its shape and the fact that the crater is filled in by water. Interesting but not what I would call stunning.

PARIS- This entry was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Throughout the Geographic names section, there are several instances of multiple cities with the same name. My dictionary offers no apparent rhyme or reason as to which location comes first under such circumstances. With Paris, MW lists the Texas city first, even though the French city of Paris is (1) around 10 times more populous, (2) older by a matter of centuries, and (3) a nation’s capital city. I don’t get it.

ROSTOCK- When I was in Middle School (or it could have been 9th grade) my German class had pen pals from the city of Rostock. I don’t remember how many times I actually wrote to my pen pal, what their name was, or if they were a boy or a girl. Do they still have pen pals now? In the era of email and Facebook, I can see it being much easier but also less exciting. There’s something about getting a letter in the mail weeks after sending one yourself. Anticipation is a beautiful thing. We don’t have enough of it these days.

Language Research Service- The final page in my dictionary described this service provided by MW. If you have questions about the dates words were first used or the sources MW traces the earliest recorded use to, you can send them a letter and a self-addressed stamped envelope for their reply. They limit you to three questions per letter though, so you’ll want to stock up on stamps if you’re the inquisitive type.

Nowadays, however, MW online has a Contact Us page. This probably replaces the mail-in service. I wish I’d have known about this at the beginning of my reading journey because I had several questions along the way that I could have asked. Maybe I’ll send in my question about their ordering rational for city names.


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