YvonneI’m a little late with my contribution this week, so just a couple of quick words, which have once again come from ‘The Shadow Cartel’ by Layton Green.
Layton’s writing is always good for plenty of ‘new to me’ words, as well as some excellent 5 star ratings and ‘The Shadow Cartel’ is heading straight for that list, unless the grand finale really lets the story down … but I know that just isn’t going to happen!
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Clicking on the book’s cover image, will take you directly to its Amazon ‘buy’ page.
“Some type of sink hole?” Grey asked. “Cenote,” Fred said. “The Yucatan is a big piece of limestone Swiss cheese.”
1. – CENOTE
A cenote (pronunciation: American Spanish: , /sᵻˈnoʊti/ or /sɛˈnoʊteɪ/) is a natural pit, or sinkhole, resulting from the collapse of limestone bedrock that exposes groundwater underneath. Especially associated with the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico, cenotes were sometimes used by the ancient Maya for sacrificial offerings.
The term derives from a word used by the low-land Yucatec Maya — ts’onot — to refer to any location with accessible groundwater. Cenotes are common geological forms in low latitude regions, particularly on islands, coastlines, and platforms with young post-Paleozoic limestones that have little soil development.
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They were told there were plenty of villagers who still worshipped in the old ways, and that religion in the highlands was a syncretism of ancient beliefs and Catholicism.
2. – SYNCRETISMÂ
The amalgamation or attempted amalgamation of different religions, cultures, or schools of thought.
The merging of different inflectional varieties of a word during the development of a language.
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a weekly meme where we share new (to us) words that we have encountered in our reading. It is hosted by Kathy, over at ‘BermudaOnion’s Weblog’.You can either stop by and leave a link to your own ‘mystery’ words of the week, or just browse the eclectic mix of words that others have discovered, there is always a great selection.
Don’t forget that Kathy and the rest of us, all love to read your comments as well, so that we can visit and share your words of the week!
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Both are interesting words.
Hi Mary Ann,
I found it particularly interesting that “cenotes were sometimes used by the ancient Maya for sacrificial offerings”. We have sink holes appearing all over the UK with ever increasing regularity, however it would be really spooky to think of them in the light of some form of natural sacrificial chambers!
Thanks for taking the time to comment, I really appreciate your visit 🙂
Both new words to me 🙂
You learn something new every day, as it’s said!
Hi Nikki,
I am completely amazed at just how many words are new to me in my everyday reading. I do enjoy looking them up and sharing them with my fellow bloggers, however I sometimes get a little despondent about just how many gaps there seem to be in my education !
Great to have you stop by, I hope that all is well with you 🙂
Those are both new to me. The cenote looks pretty but it’s hard to think of what might have happened there in the past.
Hi Kathy,
As you comment, so often of these natural phenomenon look amazingly beautiful, yet so many times they turn out to be deadly traps for the unsuspecting.
It always makes me wonder at the complexity of this planet and what it ultimately has in store for us, for it is that alone which I believe is going to control and define our final destiny as the human race, not politicians or governments.
Thanks for hosting and for taking the time to visit participating blogs. I always enjoy this meme 🙂
Both are new words for me. There’s a beauty to that photo you shared, but sink holes are scary!
Hi Kelly,
Having a cenote open up in a remote and sparsely populated area, to leave behind such a natural beauty, is one thing. However, the type of sink holes which are opening up regularly in our towns and cities, often claiming property and lives, is another. Especially when there is no warning an event is about to occur and you can’t do a darned thing about it!
Syncretism, I automatically assumed, would have been some derivation of synchronised and I was most surprised to discover that they share no common route and are indeed, two completely independent words.
I hope that all is well with you and thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂
Both interesting words. Glad you are enjoying The Shadow Cartel.
I keep meaning to do this meme, I will hopefully get to it someday.
Hi Naida,
It would be great to have you stop by the meme some day. It really does focus my mind, when I come across new to me words, whether it be in my own reading, or other sources. I find that I always have pen and paper to hand, to make a note of the word and the context in which I heard it used. I had no idea how many words I didn’t know 🙂
Layton Green’s books are always winners for me, especially the ‘Dominic Grey’ series, which is growing in depth and complexity, case by case 🙂