Opinions matter … except when they don’t. The world is so full of opinions. Some are good, thoughtful, and based on excellent reasoning. Others are divisive and have no place in the world. Still others are about matters so small they barely affect anything or anyone else. But there is a word for someone who offers certain kinds of opinions: ultracrepidarian.
Meaning: someone who offers opinions on matters about which they know very little or nothing at all.
Origin: from the Latin ultra, meaning “beyond”, and crepidarius, meaning “shoemaker”. The word itself was used as early as 1819, possibly by Willaim Hazlitt. However, the meaning behind the word extends much further back. Ancient Roman writer Pliny the Elder, in his Naturalis Historia, refers to an incident involvong the painter Apelles of Kos. A cobbler was passing by and criticised Apelles’ design of a sandal in a painting he was working on. After the painter corrected this issue, the cobbler then offered other opinions on how to improve the artwork. Apelles, no doubt frustrated at the criticism of his work, remarked: “ne supra crepidam sutor iudicaret” (“a shoemaker should not judge beyond the shoe”). This led to the Latin expression sutor, ne ultra crepidam, which means “shoemaker, not beyond the shoe”, essentially warning people not to speak or judge beyond their own sphere of expertise. Apelles’ retort is now said to be a Latin proverb.
Example: One spectator was a real ultracrepidarian with his agitated remarks about how the footballers should have played the game.
You may know someone who behaves like an ultracrepidarian. It can be annoying when subjected to unwarranted and unauthoritative opinions. But it is a trap easily fallen into. Now you have, not just a word to describe someone like this, but also a Latin proverb to live by and make a smart reply.
