New lingo for 2009

There are two schools of thought re lexicography. Prescriptionists prefer to limit the language to "classic" words; this is the approach taken by some national language committees (notably the French).

The other viewpoint is to be receptive to and inclusive of all neologisms. This is the approach advocated by Erin McKean at her TED talk (it's 15 minutes long, fairly entertaining, and worth viewing).

This week the Independent (U.K.) provides an introduction to the new "lingo" for 2009. These words may or may not make it into dictionaries, but they are likely to be used more frequently in the coming year. Herewith some of my favorites (many more at the link):

Junior moment: Flip-side of a senior moment. Can be committed by adults, with a sudden lapse into immaturity; or by youth, displaying the lack of thoughtfulness, sense or self-preservation we oldies associate with them.

Extended financial families: Several generations of the same family living in one home. Love and devotion might be the glue that keeps them together, but it's more likely to be the need for care or child minding, with the added benefit of cash savings.

Nano-solar: Sunshine absorbers that don't need expensive, silicon-using panels, but use a thin film of solar cells that can be applied to any inorganic surface – windows, roof tiles, even metal. The predicted effect is that the cost of solar power will be reduced to a third of the cost of coal.

Edible estates: Phrase coined by US campaigner Fritz Haeg for digging up your lawn and growing in its place something you can eat...

Geo-fencing: What you do when, via a GPS system or mobile phone, you set a physical boundary to where someone can roam. If they exceed it, you get a warning. Used by delivery companies to be notified when drivers stray off designated routes (which sounds Big Brotherish, but could also alert a firm to a hijack). There are also geo-fencing services that can track your child's mobile, sending you a message if they deviate from their usual haunts.

Staycation: A vacation without the travelling.

Unplugging: Technological wing of the above, where someone realises that the time they spend online, on the mobile, curating the Facebook page, etc, is no substitute for living. So they put themselves on a digital diet, and possibly even cultivate an interest in things without keypads.

Pinkwashing: The dark art favoured by certain companies (you know who you are) of using ostentatious support for breast cancer research to promote your products or services.