Are Oblivion’s roots Smooth or Sticky?

Hello,

This week’s word is oblivion. According to the Cambridge Dictionary this is the state of being completely forgotten or completely destroyed. For example, a bad book of poetry would be consigned to oblivion with the passage of time, or a city could be bombed into oblivion.

Oblivion was also a legal concept after the restoration of the British monarchy with King Charles II. The Indemnity and Oblivion Act of 1660 promised a pardon, with some exceptions, for everybody who had committed crimes during the Civil War and the Interregnum (1649-1660, the time after Charles I lost his head and before his son Charles II resumed the throne – literally “between reigning monarchs”). No action was to be taken against them and the Interregnum was to be legally forgotten. Officially declaring 11 years to have never existed is an unusual concept but perhaps the best they could do to heal deep divisions?

Oblivion entered English in the late 1300s, spelled as oblivioun, to describe forgetfulness and memory loss. They borrowed it from the same word in Old French which had come directly from oblivionem (forgetfulness) and oblivisci (to forget) in Latin, so this is a word the Romans gave us.

A yawning Roman – tired and forgetful perhaps?

The origin of the word in Latin is obscure but some fun theories exist. It could have roots in smoothing over or effacing something (as a painter or carver smooths over mistakes) as ob means over and levis means smooth or grind down. Levis (nothing to do with a famous denim brand) has roots in lei (slime, sticky) so that leaves me wondering if we’re talking about smoothing over sticky paint or plaster. Honestly, we don’t know, and probably never will. It has been lost to oblivion. The English meaning of oblivion expanded from simple forgetfulness to the state of being forgotten entirely in the early 1400s.

If you’re interested in the role the Greeks had to play in forgetfulness, check out my earlier post about lethologica (the inability to recall a specific name or word) and its links to the Greek River Lethe (also known as the River of Oblivion) which runs through the Underworld.

Until next time happy reading, writing, and wordfooling,

Grace (@Wordfoolery)

p.s. regular Wordfools will be glad to hear I received the final cover art for “Words the Vikings Gave Us” this week – it looks stunning. Never fear, you’ll be the first ones to hear about the cover reveal and book launch.