Today's Words: Guidon, Ethnocentric and Pemmican

Guidon

(gahyd-n) Noun

a small flag or streamer carried as a guide

More about Guidon

First recorded in 1540–50.

Borrowed directly from French; equivalent to the Italian guid(are), “to guide" + -one, noun suffix.

Examples of Guidon

The soldiers rallied around their unit’s guidon during the parade.

The guidon fluttered wildly in the wind as the captain carried it.

Ethnocentric

(eth-noh-sen-trik) Adjective

demonstrating a belief in the inherent superiority of one’s own ethnic group or culture

More about Ethnocentric

First recorded in the 1860s; combines ethno + -centric

Originated as a technical term in social sciences.

Examples of Ethnocentric

The student’s ethnocentric views limited his understanding of global issues.

The curriculum was revised to address its ethnocentric bias, ensuring it represented a broader range of cultural viewpoints.

Pemmican

(pem-i-kuhn) Noun

dried meat pounded into a powder and mixed with fat and dried fruits

More about Pemmican

First recorded in 1735–45.

Originally made by some Indigenous peoples of North America.

Borrowed from the Cree pimihkān, meaning “to make pemmican,” or literally “to make grease.”

Examples of Pemmican

Native American tribes traditionally made pemmican by mixing dried bison meat with fat and berries for long-lasting nourishment.

The recipe for pemmican has been passed down through generations, valued for its nutritional benefits.

Inputs Courtesy: Dictionary.com

Comments

When Punjab Chief Minister's Son Was Paraded On Underwear

Year, 1959, Place Amritsar. Some Indian Army Officers & their wives went to the Railway Station to see off one of their colleagues. Some goons made lewd remarks against the women & tried to molest them. The Army Officers chased the goons who took shelter in a nearby Cinema Theatre. The matter was reported to Commanding Officer Col Jyothi Mohan Sen. On learning about the incident, the Col ordered the Cinema Hall to be surrounded by troops. All the goons were dragged out, the leader of the goons was so heady and drunk with power; he was none other than the son of Chief Minister of Punjab, Pratap Singh Kairon, a close associate of the then PM, Jawahar Lal Nehru. All the goons were stripped to their underwear, paraded in the streets of Amritsar & later interned in the Cantonment. The next day, the Chief Minister became furious & tried to release his son from Indian Army's incarceration. Do you know what happened? His vehicle was not allowed to go into the Cantonment a...

World-renowned Cartoonist BG Gujjarappa says: My Best is Yet to Come

Many people are in the fond practice of complaining every now and then that they hardly get any time to pursue their passions. Maybe, they could be genuine in their own ways, but never ever in the case of the veteran artist, political cartoonist, caricaturist, children’s illustrator, and also into multimedia, Banagere Gangaiah Gujjarappa. Perhaps BG Gujjarappa or Gujjar as he is popularly well-known is a household name to readers of Newspapers, Tabloids, Periodicals, and a variety of books for several decades. Hemavathi connection: Sexagenarian BG Gujjarappa (03 June 1955), belongs to Doddabanagere village in the hitherto drought-prone Sira Taluk of Tumakuru district. Doddabanagere also happens to be the last village of Sira Taluk bordering Hemavathi village, an artist’s paradise in the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh. The Siddeshwara Temple is renowned for the four famous Shiva shrines as Lord Shiva appears in the human form, like in seated yoga posture, deep in meditation etc. q...

Countries with Surplus Budgets

*By Dr. Devan A budget surplus is one of the clearest signals of fiscal discipline, economic prudence, and long-term stability in governance. While many nations run chronic deficits, there remain countries that stand apart, demonstrating to the world that living within one’s means is not only possible but advantageous. A budget surplus occurs when a government’s revenues exceed its expenditures over a fiscal period. This provides room for investment in infrastructure, health, education, and sovereign wealth funds, while also acting as a shield against future economic downturns. In this essay, I will explore which countries currently maintain budget surpluses, why they succeed in doing so, what structural characteristics enable this, and what lessons deficit-ridden nations may derive from their example. Defining the Budget Surplus A government raises money primarily through taxes, duties, royalties, and state-owned enterprise dividends. Against this revenue, it spends on public wages, d...

MY Articles

Search This Blog