One of the bibliobibuli. This is the neatest word
I’ve learned this year, and it’s so much fun to say.
Bib-leo-bib-oolee. BIB
LEO BIB OOLEE.
Sorry, where was I?
It’s a plural noun, and
there doesn’t seem to be a singular form. If we apply Latin rules, then the
singular could be bibliobibulus (masculine) or bibliobibula (feminine).
Despite this fun-to-say
polysyllable word that describes many of us word nerds, librarians, writers,
and recreational readers, you might want to stick with bibliophile, with its Greek roots meaning “lover of books.” The
term bibliobibuli was invented by H.
L. Mencken in 1957, who thought such high regard for the written word – to the
point of obliviousness to reality – must be an externally influenced disorder
like alcoholism. Part of his definition even says, “drunk on books,” and he
claims we see nothing and hear nothing in our haze.
Quite unhealthy, your
reading addiction. Such a habit must be extinguished at once!
What he doesn’t realize
is that we see and hear more than the average person.
He was probably mad
because his wife was becoming smarter. Or perhaps, like some of us, he enjoyed creating
new words and saw a “reading epidemic” that required a name. Either way, the
next time someone asks, “What’s wrong with you?” just say:
“I’m bibliobibulic. Bib-leo-bib-oolic.
And yes, it’s very contagious.”
Source:
Today’s deviant ditty:
“Bow to the Ego” by Trillium
(Amanda Somerville)
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