Home Europe ‘Hug-buddy’ is Flemish word of the year

‘Hug-buddy’ is Flemish word of the year

by editor

People in Flanders have chosen Knuffelcontact — “hug-buddy” — as their word of year.

The selection was announced by dictionary publisher Van Dale and Flemish public broadcaster VRT on Tuesday.

“Flemings love to cuddle,” said the publisher in a statement, adding that the word received 52 percent of the vote.

The word was coined by Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke, who came up with it during a radio interview when explaining the importance of being able to cuddle.

“The word hugging (knuffelen) itself is already a wonderful word,” said Vandenbroucke at the time. “Hugging, that’s love, that’s pleasure.”

Belgian law allows one knuffelcontact who is permitted to enter a person’s home during the pandemic.

Most entries in the top 10 had a pandemic theme to them. Second on the list was covidioot, a reference to those who ignore the advice and dangers of COVID-19, and third was hoestschaamte, or “cough-shame.”

Other coronavirus-related words were Anderhalvemetersamenleving (which finished fifth), or “one-and-a-half-meter-society,” and raambezoek (“window visit”), which came in eighth.

Source link

Related Posts