The History of Mystery

Hello,

Last Friday I had the privilege of attending my first ever book club meeting. Despite being a bookworm since the age of nine, I’ve never tried one before and I think I was lucky with my first attempt. The lovely Irene at Academy Books in Drogheda asked me to chat to her teen book club about writing but they let me sit in for their chat about classic books first. Plus Tara makes a mighty fine hot chocolate, a double win for me.

As somebody who devoured the classic shelves during my own teens I was delighted to find them reading “Mansfield Park”, “Crime and Punishment”, “Sherlock Holmes”, and “The Odyssey” – great choices all round! I asked them to jot down some words they love and promised to blog about them here over the next few weeks and they gave me some real gems. I’m starting at the top of the list and working my way down, it seemed the most democratic approach. The first word suggested was mystery.

Christie published her first Hercule Poirot mystery in 1920. My battered copy dates to 1957, hence the price in shillings

Mystery didn’t start life as anything to do with Mr. Holmes, instead it has religious roots. It entered the English dictionary in the early 1300s spelled as misterie (although don’t expect your English teacher to accept that spelling in your exams). It was needed to describe a religious truth revealed by the divine, mystical truths, that sort of thing and came to English from Old French mistere (secret, hidden meaning) which borrowed from Latin’s mysterium (a secret rite or thing). The Romans had borrowed from the Greeks and their mysterion or mysteria (plural) was a secret rite known only to the initiated which might include sacrificial offerings, chants, processions etc.

The mysteria in Greek came from mystes – one who had been initiated and ultimately from myein (to close or shut, which is related to mute in English), perhaps indicating that they had to close their lips in secrecy or that only they could see certain rites with their open eyes.

Religious uses of mystery in English include the medieval mystery plays or the mysteries of the rosary in Roman Catholic doctrine. In more recent times you’re more likely to encounter mystery when speaking about detective stories (first used in 1908, just before Hercule Poirot’s arrival in 1920) and from 1949 you might fear mystery meat, the indigestible food served in military messes and school canteens.

Until next time, happy reading, writing, and wordfooling,

Grace (@Wordfoolery)

p.s. They say not to judge a book by its cover but I need you to do just that. If you liked the cover of my book, Words the Vikings Gave Us, please vote for it in the Cover of the Month contest on AllAuthor.com by clicking here. There are a few rounds of voting during April, but the first cut-off is Friday 7th, so please vote today. Many thanks!