Sunday, December 19, 2010

The word of the day is abecedarian:

< medieval Latin abecedāri-us (see abecedary n.2) + -an suffix.
1. Of or pertaining to the alphabet; marked with the alphabet; arranged in alphabetical order, as abecedarian psalms, like the 119th. 
2. Occupied in learning the alphabet, or pertaining to one so occupied.  (OED)


"In 1693, the philosopher John Locke suggested that learning to read could be a more enjoyable experience if there were 'Dice and Play-things with the Letters on them, to teach Children the Alphabet by playing.'  The father of liberalism and blocks would have loved Dinosaur Hill, where abecedarian wooden blocks come in fifteen languages, including Hebrew, Korean, Arabic, Norwegian, Braille, and American Sign Language ($39-$43)."

 - Patricia Marx, "Toy Stories: Rating this year's playthings", 6 December 2010 The New Yorker

No comments: