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ArishMell · 70-79, M
No, ,I have never been [i]spelunking[/i], but I have been [i]caving[/i] for 40 years or so, on and off!
As far as I can make out from the literature, even American cavers in general don't use the word "spelunking", certainly not in a formal sense. Intrigued, I tracked it down.
It was coined by a few American cavers in the 1930s or 40s, using the Greek root "Spelaeos" (= 'cave'), in an effort to sound technical. It became used quite normally by cavers in the USA for a while - but nowhere else, even in Britain and France which can claim to be the pursuit's joint birthplace. In time though it became debased by cavers themselves to describe the hobby's novices and dilettantes, and allowed to die out.
(The French tend to use [i]un[e] speleo[/i], for 'a caver'.)
"Spelunker / ing" still crops up, but mainly among cross-word compilers, journalists and others who have heard of it but little more.
[i]Spelaeolog - y /ist[/i] is another matter. That is the umbrella term for cave science, covering geology, hydrology, biology, archaeology and related disciplines studying caves and their contents. Obviously you need to be a caver as well as scientist to carry out such research, except in very limited applications!
As far as I can make out from the literature, even American cavers in general don't use the word "spelunking", certainly not in a formal sense. Intrigued, I tracked it down.
It was coined by a few American cavers in the 1930s or 40s, using the Greek root "Spelaeos" (= 'cave'), in an effort to sound technical. It became used quite normally by cavers in the USA for a while - but nowhere else, even in Britain and France which can claim to be the pursuit's joint birthplace. In time though it became debased by cavers themselves to describe the hobby's novices and dilettantes, and allowed to die out.
(The French tend to use [i]un[e] speleo[/i], for 'a caver'.)
"Spelunker / ing" still crops up, but mainly among cross-word compilers, journalists and others who have heard of it but little more.
[i]Spelaeolog - y /ist[/i] is another matter. That is the umbrella term for cave science, covering geology, hydrology, biology, archaeology and related disciplines studying caves and their contents. Obviously you need to be a caver as well as scientist to carry out such research, except in very limited applications!
Nuh - miss it. Specially the sounds - LURVE the sounds!
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reflectingmonkey · 51-55, M
@BoobooSnafu i would even go as far as saying that all speleologists are spelunkers but not all spelunkers are speleologists.
@reflectingmonkey oh c'mon!!! now Ur specialising in specific skill sets 😁
reflectingmonkey · 51-55, M
@BoobooSnafu *guy with a lisp trying to say what you just wrote * [youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUISGNwEvt0]
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