I love discovering new words and learning their history. The definitions of many words have changed over time until they are almost unrecognizable. We like to assign multiple meanings to words.

For example, a rake can be a tool used for gardening or the action of using that tool. It can also describe a man who is wealthy or has an elevated position in society but lives in an immoral way. This month, I have a collection of words related to travel, the love of travel, and the wonders of nature we may see when we travel.

Fernweh – farsickness: an urge to travel even stronger than wanderlust. Origin:

German

Coddiwomple – to travel purposely towards a vague destination. Origin: English slang

Poriomania – a tendency to leave home impulsively or to be a vagabond. Fair warning,

this term is also used to describe wandering off in a fugue state such as when persons

with dementia or epilepsy wander off and have no memory of leaving home. Origin:

German and Greek

Saudade – A desire to be near someone or something distant. Origin: Portuguese

Hodophile – a person who loves to travel, a traveler with special affinity for roads.

Origin: Greek

Gokotta – A dawn picnic to hear the first birdsong; the act of rising in the early morning to watch the birds or go outside to appreciate nature. Origin: Swedish - pronounced yo-kot-tah

Werifesteria – to wander longingly through the forest in search of mystery. Origin: Old

English

Willowwacks – a wooded, uninhabited area. Uncertain origin

Nemophilist – a haunter of the woods; one who loves the forest and its beauty and solitude. Origin: English

Dendrophile – a person who loves trees, and forests. Origin: English word derived from Ancient Greek

Thalassophile – a lover of the sea, someone who loves the sea, ocean. Origin: Greek

Komorebi – sunlight filtered through tree leaves. Origin: Japanese

Serein – fine rain falling after sunset from a sky in which no clouds are visible. Origin:

French and Latin

Woodnote – a wild or natural musical tone, for example, the sound of a bird singing in

the forest. Origin: British English

Marmoris -the shining surface of the ocean. It derives from the Latin word Marmor

which means a block of marble or pulverized marble. Origin: Latin