Word For The Day, Thursday, September 26, 2013 – shibboleth

dictionaries ad nauseam | 26 September 2013 | Thursday's sub

[secret garden]

---

In order that we might all raise the level of discourse and expand our language abilities, here is the daily post of "Word for the Day".

shibboleth (SHIB-uh-lith, -leth) noun
1. The use of a word or pronunciation that distinguishes a group of people.
2. A slogan, belief, or custom that's now considered outmoded.

Example sentences:
"Kurdish Iraq's two dominant parties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, fought a civil war in the 1990s. Ordinary words turned into shibboleths. Using the word afrat for 'woman' revealed a link with the KDP; the PUK used the word zhin. Today, the two parties share power. This has resulted in an attempt at linguistic fusion that makes Ferhadi shudder: whenever political leaders refer to women, they say 'afrat and zhin' to show that they have overcome old divisions."
--Sophie Hardach; 'Professor, You're Dividing My Nation'; The Chronicle of Higher Education (Washington, DC); Jun 23, 2013.

"Osborne's allies say his urge to win is greater than his eagerness to parrot Thatcherite shibboleths."
--Rafael Behr; The Politics Column; New Statesman (London, UK); Jun 28, 2013.

Etymology:
According to the Book of Judges in the Bible, the Gileadites used the Hebrew word shibboleth (ear of corn; stream) to identify the fleeing Ephraimites who couldn't pronounce the sh sound. 42,000 Ephraimites were slaughtered. Earliest documented use: 1382.
Some massacres in which the pronunciation of a word played a key part: Parsley Massacre, Battle of the Golden Spurs, Sicilian Vespers. The meaning of the term has now widened. It could be applied to anything, not just the pronunciation of a word, that distinguishes people. It could be a way of eating, dressing, etc.

The sentence must, in some way, relate to the news of the day. The Review threads are linked for your edification. ;-)
Practice makes perfect.....post on....

---

Review Threads:

Review Thread One: Word For The Day, Thursday 11/14/02: Raffish
Review Thread Two: Word For The Day, Tuesday 1/14/03: Roister
Review Thread Three: Word For The Day, Tuesday 1/28/03: Obdurate

WFB's attempt to emulate us ; ) No pushing at the door please!

[ConorMacNessa]

From "The People Speak" by Carl Sandburg:

"Faiths blow on the winds
and become shibboleths
and deep growths
with men ready to die
for a living word on the tongue,
for a light alive in the bones,
for dreams fluttering in the wrists . . .

America demands Justice for the Fallen of Benghazi!

Genuflectimus non ad principem sed ad Principem Pacis!

Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. (Isaiah 49:1 KJV)

[afraidfortherepublic]

I watch Matlock re-runs until my husband gets up. Then he switches back to F & F, but it has become a disgusting program — all fluff and no substance. Hemmer and McCallum is better at 8 (Central) but, overall, Fox has become a real disappointment.

[afraidfortherepublic]

I watch Matlock re-runs until my husband gets up. Then he switches back to F & F, but it has become a disgusting program — all fluff and no substance. Hemmer and McCallum is better at 8 (Central) but, overall, Fox has become a real disappointment.

[NeoCaveman]

The GOP leadership, talk about an oxymoron, has its own shibboleths. Bunch of losers.

[secret garden]

A for you.

[secret garden]

A for you.

[secret garden]

They cannot pronounce schedule either.

[secret garden]

No, just a way to deny nonprofit status. A for you.

[secret garden]

Iowahawk has been taking it to him lately. Along with Cory the phony Booker. A+ for you.

[secret garden]

You know how crazy they are over there. A for you.

[secret garden]

I am giving up on Modern Family. The gheyness, it burns. A for you.

[secret garden]

I don’t like much Sandburg, but that is nice. A+ for you.

[secret garden]

Phone calls? What phone calls? A+ for you.

[secret garden]

Truthy, have you seen my favorite video of the week? It will melt your heart.

[SoothingDave]

I have last night’s on my DVR but haven’t watched it yet.

[TruthShallSetYouFree]

Thanks for the link. I forwarded it to my daughter,
who will be having her third child in a few weeks. She has a 4 year-old girl and a 2 year-old boy. It will be our grandchild #9, and will break a 4-4 gender tie.

[ConorMacNessa]

He's not on my preferred list either, but that passage has stuck in my mind since I read it in High School almost a half century ago.

America demands Justice for the Fallen of Benghazi!

Genuflectimus non ad principem sed ad Principem Pacis!

Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. (Isaiah 49:1 KJV)

[secret garden]

I’m in the process of Tivoing the BB marathon and don’t usually watch shows live but the best moment was Mitchell getting Lily ready for school.

[xsmommy]

saw you being your pedantic best on this thread which mirrors our discussion of last week about the Pope.

[SoothingDave]

I watched the BB pilot last night. So good to see the mild-mannered guy just starting to become assertive.

Telling the car wash guy off (”f you and your eyebrows”) and assaulting the punks in the store mocking his crippled son.