There often comes times in our life when we experience something so fascinating that we find ourselves at a loss of words. Well, travelling does that to you, more often than you'd realise. While we all enjoy our subtle encounters with ‘wanderlust' and ‘fernweh‘ here and there, there's a whole lot of literary gems on the table still left untouched. From French to Latin to German, you'll love these new unusual travel words and their fascinating meanings we have found for you. Time to update your travel dictionary!
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5 fascinating travel words you must know
Trouvaille (n.)
Origin: French
Meaning: Something lovely discovered by chance.
A waterfall hidden from the touristy eye, a secret hole in the wall that stays open all night long, an isolated pathway leading to a hilltop with the most surreal sunset view ever—there's a certain charm in lucky finds while travelling. Trouvaille is all about those magical unexpected moments we experience during our journeys.
Numinous (adj.)
Origin: Latin
Meaning: Something that makes you fearful yet fascinated, awed yet attracted, overwhelmed yet inspired.
When I think of this word, my mind wanders off to the time when I stood at the edge of a cliff, with my heart thumping and mouth dry, with a parachute attached to my back waiting for my cue to take a leap and make the jump. Paragliding in Himachal Pradesh's Bir was probably the first time in my travelling history that I had felt both nervous and excited at the same time. Numinous moments are guaranteed with such thrilling adventures.
The word numinous defines the feeling we get right before an adventure when we are both fearful and fascinated! Photo: Pexels
Cockaigne (n.)
Origin: French
Meaning: An imaginary land of luxury and idleness.
Every destination seems like a wonderland before you step out there to explore it. Coming from an old phrase that literally means ‘the land of plenty', cockaigne points at all those far-off, swanky places of your dream, where physical comforts and pleasures are always at hand. When we put it like that, ultra luxury resorts (think Burj Al Arab Jumeirah in Dubai, Palms Casino in Vegas or The Plaza in NYC) have come quite close to the utopian world that the term tends to create.
Sehnsucht (n.)
Origin: German
Meaning: A wistful longing for travels that have been and travels that are yet to come.
There are moments when I feel a sudden urge to pack a bag and head out to explore something new, or sometimes, revisit even something old—serious wanderlust-ers would relate. It felt almost impossible to be able to describe the feeling in words until I chanced upon this one. Sehnsucht takes me from the craggy, fascinatingly isolated moonscape of Spiti Valley that I explored a few years back, to the black sand beach of Vik in Iceland that I wish to stroll along some day.
Sehnsucht is your word if you are looking to express your feeling of an uncontrollable urge to travel. Photo: Pexels
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Solivagant (adj.)
Origin: Latin
Meaning: Wandering alone.
For some, travelling without a company might sound a sad affair. This one isn't for them. It's for those eager hearts that wish to see this big world on a single ticket and take it all in. Travelling alone opens up opportunities for you to meet new people, explore different cultures, and see the world in a different lens. A solivagant journey may not be for everyone, but it is certainly worth a try.
