This week's theme
There's a word for it

This week's words
snowbroth
anatopism
quaternary
elflock
allochthonous

This week's comments
AWADmail 581

Next week's theme
Baddies from fiction

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(uh-LOK-thuh-nuhs)

MEANING:

adjective: Originating in a region other than where it is found.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Greek from allos (other) + chthon (earth, land). Ultimately from the Indo-European root dhghem- (earth), which also sprouted human, homicide, humble, homage, chamomile, exhume, inhume, chthonic, disinter, chameleonic, and Persian zamindar (landholder). Earliest documented use: 1888.

USAGE:

"Like many other countries with a colonial legacy, Rwanda's constitutions before 1994 were rather allochthonous. The existing constitutions were based on foreign models which never took into account the peculiarities of the Rwandan nation."
Michael Ngabo; Alleged Lack of Political Space; The New Times (Rwanda); Apr 6, 2011.

"Fish populations have been deeply altered, allochthonous fish species accounting for the 42% of the total fish species in the Ebro."
Damià Barceló and Mira Petrovic; The Ebro River Basin; Springer; 2011.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: