January 21: International Hugging Day/International Day of Mother Languages

If you’re Greek, you have reason to be extra proud of your mother language, as it ‘s used all over the world. In “anatomy” for example, which means “to cut up”, because that’s what the ancients did, to identify bodyparts, and name them for something that looked alike. In the “hippocampus” in the head, they saw a seahorse. And the scientific name for tailbone is “coccyx”, because it looks like a cuckoo’s beak. Finger- and toebones are called “phalanges”, because they seemed lined up for battle, like in a “phalanx”, the famous war formation. Mythology also was a source of inspiration. The “iris” in our eyes recalls the goddess of the rainbown while the “talus” bone in our foot relates to a weak spot at the ankle of a bronze giant. When they tried to guess a purpose, they made mistakes, like with “arteriess”, meaning “air holders”. But they also came up with pure poetry. How about the “love charm” or “phyltrum”, the little groove between upper lip and nose? Maybe you didn’t even know it has a name. But you’ll think about it, next time you kiss…