vellichor

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English

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Etymology

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Coined by American author and neologist John Koenig, creator of The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, as a blend of vellum (parchment) and ichor.[1] Compare petrichor.

Noun

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vellichor (uncountable)

  1. (neologism) The pensive nostalgia and temporality of used bookstores; the feeling evoked by the scent of old books or paper.
    • 2017, Ana Kimm, "The Bookstop", Ink Stains (Pechersk School International, Kiev, Ukraine), Summer 2017, page 86:
      It seemed that nobody else was in the shop, so I wandered around, both intimidated and entranced by the sense of vellichor as I traced my fingers along the leather spines of books beyond my time.
    • 2018, Sam Millar, The Bespoke Hitman:
      Bringing the drawing to his face, he closed his eyes, inhaling the paper's vellichor, the opium-like smell of yesteryear and childhood.
    • 2019, Brooke Santoyo, Hanakatoba[1], page 36:
      I stepped inside to see rows and rows of old books and tables to sit at. The vellichor of the place hit me in the face like a cold harsh wind.
    • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:vellichor.

References

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  1. ^ Koenig, John (2021) “vellichor”, in The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, New York: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 163

Anagrams

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