ABOUT THE SPEAKER
John Koenig - Writer
John Koenig is writing an original dictionary of made-up words.

Why you should listen

John Koenig has spent the last seven years writing an original dictionary of made-up words, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which fills gaps in the language with hundreds of new terms for emotions. This project seeks to restore sadness to its original meaning (from Latin satis, "fullness") by defining moments of melancholy that we may all feel, but never think to mention -- deepening our understanding of each other by broadening the emotional palette, from avenoir, "the desire to see memories in advance," to zenosyne, "the sense that time keeps going faster."

Each entry is a collage of word roots borrowed from languages all around the world. Some entries are even beginning to enter the language outright:

sonder n. The realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own -- populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness -- an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you'll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.

His original YouTube series, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which he writes, edits and narrates himself, has drawn acclaim from John Green and Beyoncé to Michael from Vsauce. "Each episode is a soothing meditation on its subject, fortified by a hypnotic soundtrack and Koenig’s twistingly intelligent narration," writes The Daily Dot.

He currently works as a freelance video editor, voice actor, graphic designer, illustrator, photographer, director and writer. His writing has been published in countless tattoos, stories, song titles and band names, but never on paper -- though he is currently working on publishing a book adaptation. Originally from Minnesota and Geneva, Switzerland, John lives in Budapest with his wife.

More profile about the speaker
John Koenig | Speaker | TED.com
TEDxBerkeley

John Koenig: Beautiful new words to describe obscure emotions

John Koenig: Lindas palavras novas para descrever emoções obscuras

Filmed:
1,814,744 views

John Koenig adora encontrar palavras para expressar os sentimentos difíceis de serem articulados, como "lachesism", a sede por desastre, e "sonder", a percepção de que a vida dos outros é algo tão complexo e desconhecido quanto a nossa própria. Nesta palestra, ele traz reflexões sobre os significados que damos às palavras e como esses significados podem se ligam às pessoas.
- Writer
John Koenig is writing an original dictionary of made-up words. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:13
Today I want to talk
about the meaning of words,
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Hoje eu quero falar
sobre o significado das palavras.
Como nós as definimos e como elas,
quase que como uma vingança,
00:16
how we define them
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00:17
and how they, almost as revenge,
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00:20
define us.
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nos definem.
00:21
The English language
is a magnificent sponge.
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A língua inglesa é uma magnífica esponja.
00:24
I love the English language.
I'm glad that I speak it.
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Eu amo a língua inglesa,
e que bom que falo inglês.
Entretanto, ela tem um monte de buracos.
00:27
But for all that, it has a lot of holes.
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Em grego, há uma palavra, "lachesism",
00:30
In Greek, there's a word, "lachesism"
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00:32
which is the hunger for disaster.
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que é a ânsia por desastre.
Como quando vemos
uma tempestade no horizonte
00:36
You know, when you see
a thunderstorm on the horizon
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e nos pegamos indo em direção ao temporal.
00:40
and you just find yourself
rooting for the storm.
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Em mandarim, há uma palavra, "yù yī",
00:44
In Mandarin, they have a word "yù yī" --
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00:46
I'm not pronouncing that correctly --
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não estou pronunciando corretamente,
que significa o desejo de nos sentirmos
intensamente, de novo,
00:48
which means the longing
to feel intensely again
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00:51
the way you did when you were a kid.
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como nos sentíamos quando criança.
00:55
In Polish, they have a word "jouska"
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Em polonês, há a palavra "jouska",
que é o tipo de conversa hipotética
00:58
which is the kind of
hypothetical conversation
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01:02
that you compulsively
play out in your head.
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que passa compulsoriamente por sua cabeça.
E finalmente, em alemão,
claro que em alemão,
01:06
And finally, in German,
of course in German,
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01:09
they have a word called "zielschmerz"
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eles têm a palavra "zielschmerz",
01:12
which is the dread
of getting what you want.
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que é o medo de conseguir o que se quer.
01:15
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
01:20
Finally fulfilling a lifelong dream.
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De finalmente realizar o maior sonho.
(Risos)
01:23
I'm German myself,
so I know exactly what that feels like.
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Eu mesmo sou alemão, então sei
exatamente como é sentir-se assim...
01:27
Now, I'm not sure
if I would use any of these words
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Agora, eu não sei se usaria
qualquer uma dessas palavras
01:29
as I go about my day,
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no meu dia a dia,
01:31
but I'm really glad they exist.
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mas fico feliz de que elas existam.
01:33
But the only reason they exist
is because I made them up.
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Mas a única razão pela qual
elas existem é porque eu as inventei.
01:37
I am the author of "The Dictionary
of Obscure Sorrows,"
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Sou o autor do "The Dictionary
of Obscure Sorrows",
01:41
which I've been writing
for the last seven years.
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que tenho escrito pelos últimos sete anos.
01:44
And the whole mission of the project
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E a missão desse projeto
01:46
is to find holes
in the language of emotion
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é encontrar lacunas
na linguagem das emoções
01:51
and try to fill them
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e tentar preenchê-las,
01:52
so that we have a way of talking
about all those human peccadilloes
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para que tenhamos um jeito de falar
sobre todos os escorregões
01:56
and quirks of the human condition
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e peculiaridades dos seres humanos
01:58
that we all feel
but may not think to talk about
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que todos sentimos,
mas talvez não pensamos em expressar,
02:02
because we don't have the words to do it.
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porque não temos as palavras para isso.
02:05
And about halfway through this project,
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E, lá pela metade do projeto,
02:08
I defined "sonder,"
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eu defini "sonder"
02:09
the idea that we all think of ourselves
as the main character
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como a ideia de acharmos
que somos o personagem principal,
02:13
and everyone else is just extras.
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e as outras pessoas são apenas figurantes.
02:15
But in reality,
we're all the main character,
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Mas, na realidade,
todos nós somos o protagonista,
02:18
and you yourself are an extra
in someone else's story.
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e também somos um figurante
na história de alguém.
02:23
And so as soon as I published that,
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E, assim que publiquei o dicionário,
02:26
I got a lot of response from people
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recebi várias respostas de pessoas
02:28
saying, "Thank you for giving voice
to something I had felt all my life
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dizendo: "Obrigado por dar forma
a algo que eu senti minha vida inteira,
02:32
but there was no word for that."
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mas não havia palavras para expressar".
02:35
So it made them feel less alone.
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Isso fez elas se sentirem menos sós.
02:38
That's the power of words,
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Esse é o poder das palavras:
02:40
to make us feel less alone.
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fazer com que nos sintamos menos sós.
02:44
And it was not long after that
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E em seguida
02:46
that I started to notice sonder
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eu comecei a notar "sonder"
02:47
being used earnestly
in conversations online,
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sendo usada de verdade
em conversas on-line,
02:52
and not long after I actually noticed it,
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e, não muito tempo depois de notar isso,
02:55
I caught it next to me
in an actual conversation in person.
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vi acontecer pessoalmente,
em uma conversa real.
02:58
There is no stranger feeling
than making up a word
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Não há nada mais estranho
do que inventar uma palavra
03:01
and then seeing it
take on a mind of its own.
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e vê-la ser usada,
ganhando uma voz própria.
Ainda não tenho uma palavra
para isso, mas terei!
03:05
I don't have a word
for that yet, but I will.
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03:07
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
03:09
I'm working on it.
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Estou trabalhando nisso.
03:11
I started to think
about what makes words real,
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Comecei a pensar sobre o que faz
as palavras serem reais,
03:15
because a lot of people ask me,
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porque as pessoas me perguntam,
03:17
the most common thing
I got from people is,
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é muito comum eu escutar delas:
03:19
"Well, are these words made up?
I don't really understand."
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"Essas palavras são inventadas?
Eu realmente não entendo".
03:22
And I didn't really know what to tell them
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E eu não sabia o que responder,
porque, se "sonder" começou
a ser usada, quem sou para dizer
03:24
because once sonder started to take off,
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03:26
who am I to say what words
are real and what aren't.
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quais palavras são reais ou não?
03:30
And so I sort of felt like Steve Jobs,
who described his epiphany
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Eu me senti quase como Steve Jobs,
que descreveu sua epifania
03:34
as when he realized that most of us,
as we go through the day,
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quando percebeu que a maioria de nós,
no decorrer do dia,
03:37
we just try to avoid
bouncing against the walls too much
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apenas tenta evitar bater a cara na parede
03:40
and just sort of get on with things.
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e meio que tenta levar as coisas.
03:43
But once you realize that people --
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Mas, quando você percebe que as pessoas...
03:48
that this world was built
by people no smarter than you,
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que esse mundo foi construído por pessoas
não mais inteligentes que você,
03:52
then you can reach out
and touch those walls
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você consegue tocar essas paredes
03:54
and even put your hand through them
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e até mesmo atravessá-las
03:55
and realize that you have
the power to change it.
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e perceber que tem
o poder de mudar o mundo.
03:59
And when people ask me,
"Are these words real?"
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Quando as pessoas me perguntavam:
"Essas palavras são reais?",
04:02
I had a variety of answers
that I tried out.
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eu tentava várias respostas.
04:04
Some of them made sense.
Some of them didn't.
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Algumas faziam sentido, outras não.
04:07
But one of them I tried out was,
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Mas uma delas foi:
04:08
"Well, a word is real
if you want it to be real."
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"Bom, uma palavra é real
se você quer que ela seja".
04:12
The way that this path is real
because people wanted it to be there.
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Do mesmo jeito que esse caminho é real,
porque as pessoas quiseram que ele fosse.
04:16
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
04:18
It happens on college
campuses all the time.
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Acontece em universidades o tempo todo.
É a "linha do desejo".
04:20
It's called a "desire path."
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04:21
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
04:22
But then I decided,
what people are really asking
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Mas então entendi que, quando as pessoas
perguntam se uma palavra é real,
04:25
when they're asking if a word is real,
they're really asking,
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o que elas querem saber é:
04:27
"Well, how many brains
will this give me access to?"
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"A quantos cérebros
isso vai me dar acesso?"
04:33
Because I think that's
a lot of how we look at language.
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Porque acho que é dessa forma
que olhamos para a língua.
04:35
A word is essentially a key
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Uma palavra é, essencialmente, uma chave
04:38
that gets us into certain people's heads.
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que nos leva à cabeça de certas pessoas.
04:41
And if it gets us into one brain,
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E, se nos leva a apenas um cérebro,
04:44
it's not really worth it,
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não vale a pena,
04:46
not really worth knowing.
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não vale a pena saber.
04:47
Two brains, eh, it depends on who it is.
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Dois cérebros... depende de quem é.
04:49
A million brains, OK, now we're talking.
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Um milhão de cérebros... certo, agora sim.
04:52
And so a real word is one that gets you
access to as many brains as you can.
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Uma palavra real é aquela que te dá
acesso ao máximo de cérebros que puder.
04:59
That's what makes it worth knowing.
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Isso é o que faz valer a pena conhecê-la.
05:02
Incidentally, the realest word of all
by this measure is this.
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Por acaso, a palavra mais real de todas,
segundo essa ideia, é esta.
05:06
[O.K.]
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[o.k.]
05:08
That's it.
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É essa.
A palavra mais real que temos.
05:09
The realest word we have.
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É a palavra mais próxima
que temos de uma chave mestra.
05:11
That is the closest thing we have
to a master key.
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05:13
That's the most commonly
understood word in the world,
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Essa é a palavra mais entendida
no mundo todo, não importa onde esteja.
05:16
no matter where you are.
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05:17
The problem with that is,
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O problema é que ninguém parece saber
o significado dessas duas letras.
05:18
no one seems to know
what those two letters stand for.
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05:21
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
05:23
Which is kind of weird, right?
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O que é meio estranho, não?
05:26
I mean, it could be a misspelling
of "all correct," I guess,
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Quer dizer, poderia ser a grafia errada
de "all correct", "tudo certo".
05:29
or "old kinderhook."
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Ou "old kinderhook". Ninguém parece saber!
05:30
No one really seems to know,
but the fact that it doesn't matter
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Mas o fato é que isso não importa.
05:34
says something about
how we add meaning to words.
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A questão é como colocamos
sentido nas palavras.
05:38
The meaning is not
in the words themselves.
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O significado não está nas palavras em si.
05:41
We're the ones
that pour ourselves into it.
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Somos nós que damos sentido a elas.
05:45
And I think, when we're all searching
for meaning in our lives,
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Acho que, quando estamos procurando
por significado em nossas vidas,
05:50
and searching for the meaning of life,
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procurando pelo sentido da vida,
05:51
I think words have
something to do with that.
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acho que as palavras
estão relacionadas a isso.
05:56
And I think if you're looking
for the meaning of something,
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E, se você está procurando
pelo significado de algo,
05:58
the dictionary is a decent place to start.
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o dicionário é um bom lugar
para se começar.
06:01
It brings a sense of order
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Traz um senso de ordem
06:04
to a very chaotic universe.
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a um universo bem caótico.
06:06
Our view of things is so limited
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Nossa visão das coisas é tão limitada,
06:09
that we have to come up
with patterns and shorthands
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que temos de criar padrões e descrições
06:12
and try to figure out
a way to interpret it
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e tentar encontrar
um jeito de interpretá-las
06:14
and be able to get on with our day.
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para podermos seguir com o nosso dia.
06:17
We need words to contain us,
to define ourselves.
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Precisamos de palavras
que nos abarquem, que nos definam.
06:21
I think a lot of us feel boxed in
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Muitos de nós nos sentimos engessados
06:24
by how we use these words.
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por como utilizamos essas palavras.
06:25
We forget that words are made up.
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E esquecemos que palavras são inventadas.
06:28
It's not just my words.
All words are made up,
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Não só as minhas palavras,
todas são inventadas,
06:31
but not all of them mean something.
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mas nem todas significam algo.
06:33
We're all just sort of
trapped in our own lexicons
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Todos nós meio que estamos
presos em nossos próprios léxicos,
06:38
that don't necessarily correlate
with people who aren't already like us,
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que não necessariamente se relacionam
com pessoas que já não são como nós,
06:42
and so I think I feel us drifting apart
a little more every year,
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sinto que estamos nos distanciando
um pouco mais a cada ano,
06:47
the more seriously we take words.
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quanto mais consideramos as palavras.
06:51
Because remember, words are not real.
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Porque, lembrem-se,
as palavras não são reais.
Elas não têm significado. Nós temos.
06:55
They don't have meaning. We do.
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06:58
And I'd like to leave you with a reading
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E eu gostaria de deixar
para vocês uma citação
de um dos meus filósofos favoritos,
07:01
from one of my favorite philosophers,
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07:04
Bill Watterson, who created
"Calvin and Hobbes."
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Bill Watterson, o criador
de "Calvin e Haroldo".
Ele disse:
07:06
He said,
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(Risos)
07:09
"Creating a life that reflects
your values and satisfies your soul
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"Criar uma vida que reflita
seus valores e satisfaça sua alma
é uma realização rara.
07:12
is a rare achievement.
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07:14
To invent your own life's meaning
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Inventar um significado para ela
não é fácil,
07:17
is not easy,
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07:18
but it is still allowed,
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mas ainda é permitido,
07:20
and I think you'll be
happier for the trouble."
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e creio que você
será mais feliz se tentar".
Obrigado.
07:23
Thank you.
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(Aplausos)
07:24
(Applause)
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Translated by Erick Araújo
Reviewed by Cláudia Sander

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
John Koenig - Writer
John Koenig is writing an original dictionary of made-up words.

Why you should listen

John Koenig has spent the last seven years writing an original dictionary of made-up words, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which fills gaps in the language with hundreds of new terms for emotions. This project seeks to restore sadness to its original meaning (from Latin satis, "fullness") by defining moments of melancholy that we may all feel, but never think to mention -- deepening our understanding of each other by broadening the emotional palette, from avenoir, "the desire to see memories in advance," to zenosyne, "the sense that time keeps going faster."

Each entry is a collage of word roots borrowed from languages all around the world. Some entries are even beginning to enter the language outright:

sonder n. The realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own -- populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness -- an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you'll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.

His original YouTube series, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which he writes, edits and narrates himself, has drawn acclaim from John Green and Beyoncé to Michael from Vsauce. "Each episode is a soothing meditation on its subject, fortified by a hypnotic soundtrack and Koenig’s twistingly intelligent narration," writes The Daily Dot.

He currently works as a freelance video editor, voice actor, graphic designer, illustrator, photographer, director and writer. His writing has been published in countless tattoos, stories, song titles and band names, but never on paper -- though he is currently working on publishing a book adaptation. Originally from Minnesota and Geneva, Switzerland, John lives in Budapest with his wife.

More profile about the speaker
John Koenig | Speaker | TED.com