Genealogy rocks
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Not only is it hard to spell, few people know what it means.
As I mentioned in earlier posts, on my trip to SLC three or four days ago, I fulfilled three of my childhood dreams: 1. float in the Great Salt Lake; 2. hear the Mormon Tabernacle Choir in person; 3. visit the Family Research Center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the largest genealogical library in the world (I remember that when I was a graduate student more than half a century ago, Mormon archivists spent two years filming every Chinese genealogical record in the Harvard-Yenching Library; at that time I did not understand why they would do that, now I do).
I was chatting with some people in the lobby of the motel where I was staying, and a young man in his early twenties asked me why I wanted to do #3, visit the genealogy research center of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (he himself was a Mormon).
I asked him, "Do you know what "genealogy" means?"
"Rocks?" he suggested.
I burst out laughing, and felt embarrassed that I did so, because I mystified the poor young man.
Selected readings
- "Being descended from Confucius" (2/9/12)
- "Confucius didn't mean that" (10/23/21)
- "Moody's vs. Confucius and Mencius" (12/9/23)
- "Mao and Chinese Character Reform: Revisionist History on CCTV" (11/7/23)
Drew Smith said,
September 21, 2024 @ 9:46 pm
Small correction: The name of the facility is the FamilySearch Library.
David Morris said,
September 22, 2024 @ 6:40 am
I quite often see signs saying 'FALLING ROCKS'. I don't think it does.
Peter Taylor said,
September 22, 2024 @ 5:02 pm
@David Morris, it depends on whether the air rushing past you is experiencing laminar flow or turbulence…
Nathan said,
September 23, 2024 @ 6:31 pm
Two guesses:
1. I don't know why, but the traditional pronunciation of genealogy by English-speaking Mormons has the DRESS vowel in the first syllable, rather than the much more common FLEECE.
2. The church all but replaced the word with the phrase family history a few decades ago.