Once upon a time, a friend and I started coming up with words that weren't but should have been. These were our Words of the Day. They were a lot of fun, and I thought you, dear reader, might enjoy them too. Let's consider it a new feature, shall we?
pygoceria n. a rare but arresting physical condition whereby an animal develops horny protrusions on its flanks. pygoceric, adj.
The word is derived from the Greek pygo, rump, and ceros, horn. It was first recorded in an apocryphal chapter of The Odyssey in which Odysseus has his journey halted by a pygoceric horse who threatens to impale him if he fails to correctly solve a riddle.
Similarly, in scenes omitted from The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy reaches a crumbling yellow brick bridge and, not knowing how to cross it safely, seeks assistance from a Dodo called Pamela who manifests pygoceric symptoms.
These fictional cases are underpinned by a small but convincing body of anthropological and medical evidence uncovered in a Chinese family history, circa 1212, which culminated in the death of Li, the only child from the last surviving branch of the Xiu family. Li's premature passing at the hands of furious villagers who had sought his advice, but disliked its repercussions, ended a centuries-long heritage of pygoceria within his family.
This anecdotal report further serves to support in fact fiction's ongoing association of pygoceria with a degree of oracular insight.
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