(Best) Word of the Year: Perseverance

It all started in Germany.

The first “Wort des Jahres” (word of the year) was announced by the Association for the German Language in 1971 – a kind of symbolic honor bestowed upon what’s considered the most highly emphasized word in public use for the preceding year. Soon major dictionaries and a few news outlets across the globe followed suit, making it a December tradition to choose a WOTY (these days, it has to be a textable acronym, right?).

For 2021, says Dictionary.com, it’s “allyship.”

I don’t usually start with theirs; as an old-school linguaphile I put more faith in the tried-and-true Oxford and Merriam-Webster dictionaries. But they picked one we’re all sick of hearing, and you wouldn’t want me to open with it. Bear with me.

“Allyship,” as defined by Dictionary.com, is the status or role of someone who advocates for the total inclusion of a marginalized or politicized group – not as a member of it, but in solidarity with it.

An ally isn’t merely supportive; an ally is an active advocate. 2021 was certainly a year for sociopolitical camps and their allies fighting for diversity, equity and inclusion from race in America to health care access across the globe (and much more).

Speaking of health care, Merriam-Webster Dictionaries chose “vaccine” and Oxford chose “vax” as their WOTYs for obvious reasons. This word seldom used before 2020 suddenly became practically worn-out from repetition.

What’s interesting is that COVID required Merriam-Webster to modify and expand their definition of vaccine, which before 2020 simply read “a preparation of killed (or living) microorganisms …” Now, the definition includes broader varieties of vaccine.

Moving on to Cambridge Dictionary — and saving the best for last: Perseverance. As Cambridge put it: “It’s a word that perfectly captures the undaunted will of people across the world to never give up, despite the many challenges of 2021.”

There’s an understatement.

Before 2021, perseverance didn’t appear noticeably in Cambridge.org lookups. Then mid-February brought a spike of 30,487 searches after NASA’s Perseverance Rover made its final descent to Mars. But perseverance is about a lot more than space exploration, so Cambridge’s choice was more symbolic.

Defined by Cambridge as “continued effort to do or achieve something, even when this is difficult or takes a long time,” perseverance was looked up globally on their site more than 243,000 times during 2021.

Perseverance is one of the best human qualities. When things get tough, when illness refuses to loosen its grip, when life’s challenges seem daunting, when a long-term goal is worth attaining, perseverance provides the reins we grasp to keep charging through.

Maybe we could make this WOTY a new year’s resolution to persevere, come what may.

Sholeh Patrick is a columnist for the Hagadone News Network. Email [email protected].