How to Speak Northwestern
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EmailShare your Northwestern lingo on the Speak Northwestern Facebook page. Check out the NeD and Elliott’s companion project, WildWords.
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Ever wonder about those strange designations we use throughout Northwestern to identify alumni of the various schools of the University? See the complete list.
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Northwestern has a language all its own. Linguist Elisabeth Elliott, director of Slavic languages, launched a winter quarter course to identify the words that members of the University community use to communicate. The 17 class members created the Northwestern e-Dictionary, a 112-entry Wiki-style dictionary. Students will continue to develop the dictionary when the class is offered again next spring.
Here are a few entries from the NeD:
Imaginary engineers [ima jin a ree in jin eerz] n: Refers to industrial engineering majors, reflecting a stereotype that industrial engineers have less work than other engineering majors.
That’s because you’re an imaginary engineer.
Medildo [mu-DIL-dō] n: A student in the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications. This term is generally used when describing a Medill student who is annoyingly self-righteous or aggressively enterprising. Usually used by students who are not within Medill.
He kept badgering me for an interview. He’s such a Medildo.
Nerdwestern [nərdwestərn ] n: 1. A nickname for Northwestern, referring to the academic inclination of the students. 2. A hashtag often used after an anecdote about a nerdy instance at Northwestern or by Northwestern students.
You know you go to Nerdwestern when there are students reading Anna Karenina at the football game.
Skinny arm [skinee ärm] n: The pose with an arm on your hip and turned a little sideways in order to make yourself appear skinnier in a picture.
We’re doing a group picture? Everyone do the skinny arm.
