Ecsis

a hand holding a fossil

Ecsis

n.
the haunting sense of mystery infused into certain random details that beckons you to wonder how it ended up here at this point in time—marveling at a patch of white on a dog’s chest, a bubble trapped in an old window, a glimpse of Saturn’s rings shivering in a telescope lens—knowing that behind the thing itself is a long chain of causes and effects that veers off into the shadows of prehistory, anchored somewhere near the dawn of time, even though the end result is somehow right there in front of you, shimmering in place.

Indonesian eksis, to exist, to be. Pronounced “ek-sis.”

Adomania

a person riding a horse

Eftless

a person with hands pressed on a window

Aoyaoia

a person holding a guitar

Aimonomia

close-up of a plant with lights glowing in background

Ecsis

a hand holding a fossil

Achenia

a close-up of a bottle with an organic object inside

Craxis

a tall house of cards

Arroia

people standing on a stage

Nilous

a person standing at a bus terminal

Hem-Jawed

an abstract image of someone touching their face

Suerza

a tunnel with a light emanating from the end

Furosha

a storm raging in the sky over a building

Winnewaw

a person wearing a party hat

Aponemia

a group of people standing together

Nodrophobia

close-up of a stained shirt

Angosis

a table full of food

Mogging Folly

a person sitting on a bench

Ellipsism

a hand clawing at a wall

Vaucasy

Cover image for the Vaucasy word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Kadot

a person looking at an abstract spiral

Hailbound

Cover image for the Hailbound word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Bareleveling

Cover image for the Bareleveling word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Poggled

a person studying a book with a magnifying glass

Mogging Folly

a person sitting on a bench

Ne’er-Be-Gone

Cover image for the Ne’er-Be-Gone word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Offtides

close-up of a chromed metal object

Nighthawk

Cover image for the Nighthawk word card on the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows