Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Nostalgia |
NostalgiaNoun1. Longing for something past. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "nostalgia" was first used: 1770. (references) |
Etymology: Nostalgia \Nos*tal"gi*a\, noun. [New Latin expression, from the Greek expression a return home pain.]. (Websters 1913) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Regret | Noun: regret, repining; homesickness, nostalgia; mal du pays, maladie; lamentation;.; penitence. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
The term was, however, coined in 1678 by Johannes Hoffer (1669-1752) from Latin roots, to refer to "the pain a sick person feels because he is not in his native land, or fears never to see it again". This neologism was so successful that people forgot its origin. Moreover, its original technical meaning, referring to a serious medical disorder, has been lost as the word nostalgia entered everyday language.
During the period, from the late seventeenth century to the late nineteenth century, that doctors diagnosed and treated nostalgia, it also had other names in various languages--maladie du pays in French, Heimweh in German and el mal de corazón in Spanish.
Cases resulting in death were known and soldiers were sometimes successfully treated by being discharged and sent home. Receiving a diagnosis was, however, generally regarded as an insult.
In 1787 Robert Hamilton (1749-1830) described a case of a soldier suffering from nostalgia, who received sensitive and successful treatment:
By the 1850s nostalgia was losing its status as a particular disease and coming to be seen rather as a symptom or stage of a pathological process. It was considered as a form of melancholia and a predisposing condition among suicides. Nostalgia was, however, still diagnosed among soldiers as late as the American Civil War.
By the 1870s interest in nostalgia as a medical category had all but vanished. Most saw the decline of this serious disease was a good thing, as the result of progress. Nonetheless some lamented what they saw as the loss of the feelings for home that gave rise to the illness . Of course the phenomenon of nostalgia did not disappear with its demedicalization.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Nostalgia."
Crosswords: Nostalgia |
| English words defined with "nostalgia": auld langsyne ♦ langsyne ♦ Nostalgy ♦ old times ♦ the good old days ♦ with nostalgia. (references) |
| Non-English Usage: "Nostalgia" is also a word in the following languages with English translations in parentheses. Italian (homesickness, nostalgia), Portuguese (homesickness, nostalgia), Spanish (homesickness, nostalgia). |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | This isn't pain I'm feeling, it's nostalgia. (Ally McBeal; writing credit: Henri Vernes) The first thing God created was the journey, then came doubt, and nostalgia. (Vlemma tou Odyssea, To; writing credit: Theo Angelopoulos; Tonino Guerra) | |
Lyrics | Much nostalgia keeps bouncing through (Ain't No Place Like Home; performing artist: Prince) | |
Clever | Nostalgia isn't what it used to be. (references; author: unknown) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Hapax Legomena I: Nostalgia (1971) Nostalgia (1942) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
References | |||
Books |
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Periodicals |
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Theater & Movies | |||
Music |
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High Tech |
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Consumer Goods | |||
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Simone Signoret | Nostalgia isn't what it used to be. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Political Economy | Georgia | While Georgia's Western orientation and desire to end the Russian military presence are strong, the country is being affected by economic problems, growing popular nostalgia for the materially more beneficial "old days", and frustration over the apparent lack of results from legislated reforms. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Nostalgia" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 98.50% of the time. "Nostalgia" is used about 466 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 98.5% | 459 | 12,771 |
| Noun (proper) | 1.29% | 6 | 143,867 |
| Noun (common) | 0.21% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Total | 100.00% | 466 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Country | Name |
| USA | Nostalgia Network, Inc. (The) |
| (more examples...) |
Source: compiled by the editor from Icon Group International, Inc.
Expression using "nostalgia": with nostalgia. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "nostalgia": nostalgia-lovers, nostalgia-soaked, nostalgia-trip. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day | Expression | Frequency per Day |
nostalgia | 520 | nostalgia wheel | 8 |
nostalgia radio | 50 | racing nostalgia | 7 |
nostalgia drag racing | 31 | 70s nostalgia | 7 |
nostalgia candy | 25 | nostalgia oak | 7 |
80s nostalgia | 24 | music nostalgia | 7 |
casino nostalgia | 23 | nostalgia rod street | 6 |
nostalgia stereo system | 20 | ecuador nostalgia | 6 |
nostalgia stereo | 19 | nostalgia electronic | 6 |
nostalgia cycle | 18 | teac nostalgia | 6 |
cat fight nostalgia | 15 | 1950s nostalgia | 6 |
nostalgia oak warehouse | 13 | nostalgia family video | 6 |
funny car nostalgia | 13 | drag nostalgia | 6 |
dragster nostalgia | 11 | cuba nostalgia | 5 |
air nostalgia | 10 | nostalgia art | 5 |
tv nostalgia | 10 | nostalgia publication | 5 |
nostalgia wheels | 10 | nostalgia game | 5 |
50s nostalgia | 9 | 60s nostalgia | 5 |
fuel nostalgia top | 9 | dragsters nostalgia | 5 |
hot rod nostalgia | 9 | nostalgia store | 5 |
factory nostalgia | 8 | co mitchell ness nostalgia | 5 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Translations for "nostalgia"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Albanian | nostalgji, mall për të kaluarën, mall (commodity, goods, longing, yearning). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arabic | حنين (craving, longing, loving, yearning, yen), صبا شوق (hankering, longing), التوق إلي الماضي, أشواق (hankering). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bulgarian | носталгия (homesickness). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chinese | 乡情. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Czech | nostalgie (homesickness), stesk. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Danish | nostalgi (nostalgy), hjemve (nostalgy). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dutch | heimwee (homesickness, nostalgy). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Esperanto | nostalgio. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Faeroese | heimlongsil. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Farsi | احساس غربت , دلتنگی برای میهن . (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | nostalgie (nostalgy). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German | Heimweh (homesickness), Nostalgie (nostalgy). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | νοσταλγία (homesickness). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hebrew | 'ע'ועים (ache, craving, hankering, longing, yearning), וסטל'י". (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hungarian | nosztalgia. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indonesian | rasa rindu. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian | nostalgia (homesickness, nostalgy). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Kanji | 郷愁 (homesickness), 里心 (homesickness), ノイマン型 (christmas, fungo, Hague, heart, Hercules, hook, knob, knock, knockdown, knocker, knocking, knock-on, knockout, knot, know, know-how, knowledge, nautical mile per hour, Neumann-type, neuron, neurosis, no, noctovision, nocturne, nominal, nominal price, nominate, nomination, nomogram, nomograph, non career, non cling, non store retailing, non troppo, non-attachment disease, nonbank banking, nonbook, nonchalant, non-conforming design, nonfiction, nonius, nonpolitical, non-professional, nonrun, non-sectarian, nonsense, nonslip, nonstop, non-terminal, nontitle match, non-verbal, non-verbal communication, Noraism, Nordic, Norma, Normandy, Norway, nostalgic, nostalgie, notation, notch, notchback, notch-filter, nova, Nova Scotia, novel, novelty, nozzle, number, swastika, unaffiliated, vernier calipers, vernier micrometer), 望郷 (homesickness), 懐郷 (homesickness, longing for home), 懐旧 (recalling the old days, reminiscences), 懐古 (recalling the old days, reminiscences). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Katakana | ノスタルジア , きょうしゅう (assault, charming and coy, homesickness, instruction, training, violent attack), ぼうきょう (anticommunist, homesickness), さと""ろ (homesickness), かいきゅう (class, grade, rank, recalling the old days, reminiscences), かいきょう (channel, homesickness, Islam, longing for home), かい" (discharge, dismissal, recalling the old days, recollection, reminiscences, silkworm). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Korean | 향수 (fragrance, Perfume, Perfumes). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manx | foddeeaght (distance, hankering, homesickness, longing). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | ostalgianay nostalgia (homesickness). (various references) nostalgie (homesickness), dor de ţarã. (various references) ностальгия (homesickness). (various references) nostalgija (homesickness). (various references) nostalgia (homesickness, nostalgy). (various references) nostalgi. (various references) โรคคิ"ถึงบ้าน, ความอาลัยอาวร"์. (various references) nostalji, vatan hasreti (homesickness), hasret (craving, hankering, longing, sick, sighed-for, yearning), geçmişe özlem, özlem (aspiration, craving, hankering, hunger, longing, missing, yearning, yen). (various references) туга за минулим, туга за батьківщиною, ностальгія (homesickness). (various references) nỗi nhớ nh (homesickness), lòng nhớ quê hương nỗi luyến tiếc quá kh. (various references) hiraeth (grief, homesickness, yearning). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Greek | 700 BCE-300 CE | nostos. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "nostalgia": nostalgias. (additional references) | |
| |
"Nostalgia" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Boscaglia, Jotangia, nastalgia, nestalgia, nosalgia, nostagia, nostalagia, nostalga, nostaligia, nostgalia, nostilgia, nostolgia, notalgia, nustalgia. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| Words rhyming with "nostalgia" (pronounced 'Nos*tal"gi*a'): Enteralgia, Fungia, gastralgia, hemiplegia, Hyalospongia, loggia, menorrhagia, metrorrhagia, monoplegia, Myalgia, Neuralgia, Odontalgia, Otalgia, Pleuralgia, Podalgia, Prosopalgia, Rachialgia, Rhachialgia, Splenalgia. (additional references) |
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
Direct Anagrams: analogist. | |
| Words within the letters "a-a-g-i-l-n-o-s-t" | |
-1 letter: alations, antilogs, otalgias, solating. | |
-2 letters: against, agnails, agnosia, agonist, alation, analogs, antilog, antisag, galiots, gitanos, lasting, latigos, latinos, logania, otalgia, salting, slating, solatia, staling, talions, tiglons. | |
-3 letters: agnail, agonal, alants, algins, aligns, aloins, analog, aslant, atonal, gainst, galiot, gaslit, giants, gitano, glints, gloats, ingots, instal, lagans, lanais, lasing, latigo, latino, lianas, liangs, ligans. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-a-g-i-l-n-o-s-t" | |
+1 letter: analogists, nostalgias. | |
+2 letters: allegations, angioplasty, angulations, gestational, glaciations, sailboating, stagflation. | |
+3 letters: alloantigens, coagulations, diagnostical, gastrulation, granulations, gratulations, sailboatings, stagflations. | |
+4 letters: agonistically, amalgamations, angioplasties, campanologist, cartilaginous, deflagrations, deglaciations, flagellations, galactosamine, gastronomical, gastrulations, halogenations, legalizations, misallocating, miscataloging, narratologies, narratologist, nationalising, nostalgically, postinaugural, prostaglandin, rationalising, signalization, strangulation, thanatologies, thanatologist, translocating. | |
+5 letters: agglomerations, agglutinations, anglicizations, anticoagulants, antilogarithms, campanologists, conflagrations, degranulations, diagnostically, dogmaticalness, galactosamines, gallicizations, galvanizations, generalisation, glamorizations, globalizations, megalopolitans, narratologists, paleomagnetism, paleomagnetist, progestational, prostaglandins, signalizations, somnambulating, spermatogonial, stagflationary, strangulations, thanatologists, triangulations, vulgarizations. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Hexadecimal (or equivalents, 770AD-1900s) (references)4E 6F 73 74 61 6C 67 69 61 |
| Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519; backwards) (references)
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| American Sign Language (origins from 1620-1817 in Italy and, especially, France) (references)
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| Semaphore (1791, in France) (references)
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| Braille (1829, in France) (references)
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Morse Code (1836) (references)-. --- ... - .- .-.. --. .. .- |
| Dancing Men (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1903) (references)
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Binary Code (1918-1938, probably earlier) (references)01001110 01101111 01110011 01110100 01100001 01101100 01100111 01101001 01100001 |
HTML Code (1990) (references)N o s t a l g i a |
ISO 10646 (1991-1993) (references)004E 006F 0073 0074 0061 006C 0067 0069 0061 |
| British Sign Language (Fingerspelling, BSL; 1992, British Deaf Association Dictionary of British Sign Language) (references)
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Encryption (beginner's substitution cypher): (references)488185866778737567 |
| 1. Definition 2. Crosswords 3. Usage: Modern 4. Usage: Commercial | 5. Images: Slideshow 6. Quotations: Familiar 7. Quotations: Non-fiction 8. Usage Frequency | 9. Names: Company Usage 10. Expressions 11. Expressions: Internet 12. Translations: Modern | 13. Translations: Ancient 14. Derivations 15. Rhymes 16. Anagrams | 17. Orthography 18. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
