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Szyzygy, correctly spelt syzygy according the OED Concise Edition, is a conjunction  or pairing of associated things; this pairing may also be diametrically opposed. I have always been in  interested in the ambiguity of this idea and it seemed almost natural, given my predilection for orthographical correctness, to adopt the alternative, lexicographically unacknowledged alternative (the politically correct way of saying ‘wrong’) spelling. Szyzygy, with the superfluous ‘z’ has all the outward characterics of words imbued with the risible heavy metal umlaut, pretending to a faux foreigness, whilst, given the fact that the root is the Greek suzugia being at the same time a foreign loan word, unlike with a certain brand of luxury ice-cream, the pretence is entirely genuine. That it is in fact spelt syzygy at all is merely a happenstance of  history and accident, as is the case with many spellings.

In any case, like it or not, this is my weblog (a word I prefer so much more than the horrible contraction ‘blog’). I will inevitably be writing about the ideas, concepts and topics which interest and concern me, these being mainly language, literature, culture, programming and politics.

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