Last time, we discussed an “honourable” word. This time, we look at the opposite. It is a sad fact that not everything can be honourable in this world, but at least that lends itself to the creation and use of yet another word: ignominious.
Meaning: someone or something marked as shameful, disgraceful, despicable, and/or infamous.
Origin: from ignominiosus (Latin), leading to ignominieux (French), both meaning “disgraceful”. The word historically related to one’s reputation, a thought that carries on in modern usage. The Latin nomen meant “name”, and joining it with the Latin ig (assimilated to in) meant “no”, the resultant meaning becoming “no name”. To do something ignominious meant to tarnish one’s good name to such an extent that you no longer had a good name to speak of.
Example: “The manager’s ignominious behaviour led to his arrest.”
At the time of writing this post, I am reading Bernard Cornwell’s Sharpe’s Triumph, where the word ignominious is mentioned a few times. In this book, the British Army and East India Company are fighting the Maratha Empire in India. Wars are often the stage for demonstrations of gallantry, but it is foolish to think that not a few ignominious acts have peppered the wars of our tumultuous history. Ignominy affects individuals, corporations, and governments alike.