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A.Word.A.Day--kulturkampf Kulturkampf (kool-TOOR-kahmpf) noun 1. The struggle (1871-1883) between the Roman Catholic Church and the German government under Bismarck for control over school and ecclesiastical appointments and civil marriage. 2. A conflict between secular and religious authorities. [German : Kultur, + Kampf, struggle (from Middle High German kampf, from Old High German kamph, probably ultimately from Latin campus, field).] "Some secular Israelis, as zealously committed to fighting the kulturkampf as are the rabbis, see the deal as a step towards drawing the ultra-Orthodox out of their ghettos of the mind and into the mainstream of cultural and intellectual life." Israel: Wasn't that worth waiting for?, The Economist, Jul 3, 1999. The German language's affinity for sesquipedalians once led Mark Twain to quip, "Some German words are so long that they have a perspective." Having polysyllabic words in a language is no sin as long as you get your words' worth. In that respect, those lengthy German words are worth every syllable. Where else can you find a single word, schadenfreude, for example, that conveys the whole concept of 'pleasure derived from the misfortunes of others'. The English language knows a good thing when it sees one and has generously borrowed terms from German. This week we meet seven of them, both with and without 'perspective'. -Anu X-Bonus Each of us must make his own true way, and when we do, that way will express the universal way. -Suzuki Roshi

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