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intasa, that didn’t appear in the archive. “A new word!” he crowed. Abu Bashar, our Bedouin driver, proposed that it meant “to be forgotten after having once be

intasa, that didn’t appear in the archive. “A new word!” he crowed. Abu Bashar, our Bedouin driver, proposed that it meant “to be forgotten after having once been famous.” Wow “to be forgotten after having once been famous”. This blows my mind, if in fact it turns out to be the actual meaning of this word. People who had to be on constant watch from predators eating their herds, tribes stealing and capturing members of their family, needing to search for food and water and still valued fame and the desire to be known.

Ozzie_osman 6y ago
Maybe. Though a bit of a different take, a lot of tribal communities care a lot about legacy (theirs, that of their forefathers, etc). That legacy is really what defines a tribe, and if a tribe loses its legacy, it risks falling apart. And if it falls apart, then it is vulnerable to predators eating its herds, tribes stealing members of its family, inability to find food / water. Legacy is more collective than fame (at least the modern, Western version of it), which is a lot more individualistic. It's not so much fame as legacy. The fear of a legacy (or your ancestors or your lineage) being forgotten is very, very real. (I am from the Middle East. Obviously centuries later here, but I still feel like legacy is a big cultural factor for most Arabs)
- ky3 6y ago
  > The fear of a legacy (or your ancestors or your lineage) being forgotten is very, very real. Temple Grandin, decorated autist and celibate, once yearned wistfully about how to pass on the knowledge she has gained over her lifetime. And who can forget: “I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.” - Roy, Blade Runner (1982)
orange_tee 6y ago
"intasa" just means "has been forgotten" in some dialects of Arabic. I think you are reading too much into the "once been famous" bit. "insa" is a word from the same root that means "forget it". I actually think both words are still in usage. Probably the more accurate translation is, "it was once known (i.e. known to all within the community) but has now been forgotten". Famous is less accurate. It is used for mundane things. For example, the location of an abandoned water well.
- tekcyb-org 6y ago
  Exactly right. And even if I hadn't heard the word before, somehow in arabic you can actually intuitively reach the meaning of the word, based on its structure. It's really an amazing language.
- apta_ 6y ago
  Arabic uses derivatives of words for specific connotations. "nusi" means "has been forgotten", "instasa" means "made to have been forgotten", but in this case it might be used for what was described in the article.

Ozzie_osman 6y ago

Maybe. Though a bit of a different take, a lot of tribal communities care a lot about legacy (theirs, that of their forefathers, etc). That legacy is really what defines a tribe, and if a tribe loses its legacy, it risks falling apart. And if it falls apart, then it is vulnerable to predators eating its herds, tribes stealing members of its family, inability to find food / water. Legacy is more collective than fame (at least the modern, Western version of it), which is a lot more individualistic. It's not so much fame as legacy. The fear of a legacy (or your ancestors or your lineage) being forgotten is very, very real. (I am from the Middle East. Obviously centuries later here, but I still feel like legacy is a big cultural factor for most Arabs)

ky3 6y ago
> The fear of a legacy (or your ancestors or your lineage) being forgotten is very, very real. Temple Grandin, decorated autist and celibate, once yearned wistfully about how to pass on the knowledge she has gained over her lifetime. And who can forget: “I've seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die.” - Roy, Blade Runner (1982)

orange_tee 6y ago

"intasa" just means "has been forgotten" in some dialects of Arabic. I think you are reading too much into the "once been famous" bit. "insa" is a word from the same root that means "forget it". I actually think both words are still in usage. Probably the more accurate translation is, "it was once known (i.e. known to all within the community) but has now been forgotten". Famous is less accurate. It is used for mundane things. For example, the location of an abandoned water well.

tekcyb-org 6y ago
Exactly right. And even if I hadn't heard the word before, somehow in arabic you can actually intuitively reach the meaning of the word, based on its structure. It's really an amazing language.
apta_ 6y ago
Arabic uses derivatives of words for specific connotations. "nusi" means "has been forgotten", "instasa" means "made to have been forgotten", but in this case it might be used for what was described in the article.