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#66380 04/19/02 11:35 AM
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This cannot be a new subject I am sure, but I’ll have a go anyway.

I was brought up to believe that the longest word in the English language is antidisestablishmentarian, meaning a person who is opposed to the disestablishment of the church.

Then there is the world famous Welsh railway station named:
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch which means “Saint Mary's Church in the hollow of the white hazel near a rapid whirlpool and the church of Saint Tysilio of the red cave”. But this cannot fairly be called a word – it is more like an essay. Try this link for some pictures by the way:
http://www.onlyinternet.net/jcirillo/llan.htm

Recently I have been introduced to two other words:

pneumonoultramiscroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis which is an inflammatory lung disease caused by the inhalation of fine silica dust. I am told this is now the longest word in the English language,

and:

floccinaucinihilipilification - the act of estimating as worthless. I am told this is the longest non-medical word in the English language, but I suspect it was invented in order to achieve that distinction. The question I have is what makes it, or would make it, officially “a word”? I am sure it can't be frequent or common usage - you can hardly (?) pronounce it.

Does any one have information regarding the derivation and provenance of flocci ….etc. or know of other challengers for the longest word? Or perhaps some suggestions for creating a new rival ourselves!



#66381 04/19/02 01:40 PM
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There is a lake between Massachusetts and Connecticut, which, according to a book by Wallace Nutting (I think) had a very long Indian name, now shortened (I think) to Chabunagungamog. The original was Indian for "I fish on my side, You fish on your side, nobody shall fish in the middle".


#66382 04/19/02 01:53 PM
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Just a fun thing, I know that it isn't English, which is sort of the original query.

Turkish (not that I know it myself but I have Turkish connections) is an agglutinative language (meaning you add suffixes to words to add all sorts of meanings) so you can actually make words which translate practically as whole sentences in English. One of my faves is (not all the characters come out correctly...)

"Siz ÇekoslovakyalIlastIrabildiklerimizden misiniz yoksa ÇekoslovakyalIlastIramadIklarImIzdan mIsInIz?"
Hear it at: http://www2.egenet.com.tr/mastersj/cuneyt-tongue-cheko.ra
It means
"Was it possible for us to Czechoslovakianize you or was it not possible for us to Czechoslovakianize you?"

The guy on the recording actually does it rather slowly but my friend can do it quite quickly. Very neat!

(More Turkish tongue twisters can be listened to at: http://www2.egenet.com.tr/mastersj/sounds-of-turkish--tongue-twisters.html if anyone is interested!)


#66383 04/19/02 02:26 PM
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some comments on the "longest" word, dxb:

1: floccinaucinihilipilification, the longest word in OED1, was coined ca. 1741, long enough before OED1 to make it into OED1. it's actually fairly easy to pronounce:
'floksi 'nossi 'nihili 'pilifi KAY shun
it's a great word to throw out in conversation, once you've mastered it.

2. that other, medical word wouldn't be included in any general dictionary of mine, but it is the longest word in OED2.

3. then there are those ridiculously long protein names which some, like Mrs. Byrne, include fatuously (and perhaps fastuously).
here's a previous thread on this subject:
http://wordsmith.org/board/showflat.pl?Cat=&Board=words&Number=37369

also, http://wordsmith.org/board/showflat.pl?Cat=&Board=words&Number=12898

heeere's Quinion!
http://www.quinion.com/words/weirdwords/ww-flo2.htm

(it's also my watchword at wwftd :)

#66384 04/19/02 02:43 PM
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Dear Tsuwm,

Thanks for the link and the pronunciation guide - both much appreciated. I was surprised to learn that it was so long established.

Do you think one could be prodisestablishmentarianismistically inclined?

Dear Bean,

I shall give the Turkish tonguetwister links a go tonight!

dxb.


#66385 04/19/02 02:59 PM
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A couple of other treasures from the archives about these subjects may also be fun for new folks to take a look at, and to remind the dotage what they had for breakfast =)

http://wordsmith.org/board/showflat.pl?Cat=&Board=miscellany&Number=33930&page=&view=&sb=&vc=1#Post33930

http://wordsmith.org/board/showflat.pl?Cat=&Board=words&Number=5862&page=&view=&sb=&vc=1#Post5862



#66386 04/19/02 03:59 PM
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Wonderful links, particularly liked the First Law of English Grammar. See, I said it couldn't be a new thread - but at least you got to see a Welsh railway station!

dxb.


#66387 04/19/02 04:14 PM
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Make it "a lung inflammation caused by silica dust," and the word is longer than its definition.


#66388 04/19/02 06:15 PM
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those ridiculously long protein names which some, like Mrs. Byrne, include fatuously (and perhaps fastuously).

or perhaps even facetiously.



#66389 04/19/02 06:29 PM
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So, tsuwm, in noting your site, worthless word for the day, couldn't we say, then, that this makes you our resident or supreme floccinaucinihilipilificator?

And thanks for the great rail station link, dxb!

The Only WO'N!

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