[Ads-l] juju update

[Jonathan Lighter]

My office mate in 1977 often mentioned "bad juju" in the popular sense of
"bad karma" or (archaic?)  "bad medicine."

He never said "good juju," AFAICR.

JL

On Sun, Sep 23, 2018 at 9:47 PM Barretts Mail <mail.barretts at gmail.com>
wrote:

> The English OLD (https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/juju <
> https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/juju>) has a main definition
> and a sub-definition for the magic meaning of “juju”:
>
> ——
> A charm or fetish, especially of a type used by some West African peoples.
>
> Supernatural power attributed to a charm or fetish.
> ——
>
> A. The meaning has expanded quite a bit. One meaning that doesn’t seem to
> be covered in dictionaries is simply luck (good or bad) or supernatural
> power in general:
>
> 1. Scary Mommy's Guide to Surviving the Holidays
> Jill Smokler
> https://bit.ly/2O5CJ0F <https://bit.ly/2O5CJ0F>
>
> ——
> You can’t say no to nuns…. Besides, they bring the good juju.
> ——
>
> 2. Put 'em Up!: A Comprehensive Home Preserving Guide for the Creative
> Cook…
> Sherri Brooks Vinton
> https://bit.ly/2DncYVG <https://bit.ly/2DncYVG>
>
> ——
> And if they cure what ails you or bring good juju along the way, well, all
> the better.
> ——
>
> 3. The Unknown Woman
> Laurie Paige
> https://bit.ly/2OMYtf5 <https://bit.ly/2OMYtf5>
>
> ——
> …I couldn’t believe my luck—meeting a retired steamboat captain…. Talk
> about good juju! He played the calliope … and invited me to ride along.
> ——
>
> B. In addition to the OLD meanings, Wiktionary (
> https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/juju <https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/juju>)
> says and Wiktionary (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juju <
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juju>) agrees:
>
> ——
> A superstitious belief in the karmic consequences of an action or
> behavior, usually negative in connotation.
> That's some bad juju.
> ——
>
> The Online Slang Dictionary (
> http://onlineslangdictionary.com/meaning-definition-of/bad-juju <
> http://onlineslangdictionary.com/meaning-definition-of/bad-juju>) concurs
> in this karmic meaning:
>
> ——
> an action that is likely to be harmful in a "karmic" way. In other words,
> a harmful action that may bring about the same action on oneself.
>
>         Gossiping about the boss can be bad juju.
> ——
>
> Urban Dictionary (
> https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bad%20juju <
> https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=bad%20juju>) has what
> appears to be a similar take. hasni writes:
>
> ——
> Any action that has a harmful or bad vibe to it.
> Gosipping about Laila can be bad juju.
> ——
>
> C. Urban Dictionary has additional meanings, with Brian McKinney saying:
>
> ——
> Haunted by a bad vibe or aura. Can be used as a noun or an adjective.
> ——
>
> cryptomaniac (not me) says:
>
> ——
> Some type of bad vibe or undesirable act such as walking under the ladder.
> Also used in the military for putting your life or someone else's life in
> danger.
> You don't put thermite on ammunition, privates. It's Bad Juju.
> ——
>
> Big “Boss” Daddy says:
>
> ——
> A Person Who Sleeps Around So Much That They Must Have Several STDs.
> Damn, I Must Have Saw That Girl With Four Different Guys At That Party, I
> Wouldn't Mess Around With That, She's Bad JuJu!
> ——
>
> D. Perhaps what ties these extended meanings together is the juju concept
> as described by the Good Juju Company in “The Meaning of Juju” (2012)
> https://goodjujucompany.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/the-meaning-of-juju/ <
> https://goodjujucompany.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/the-meaning-of-juju/>
>
> ——
> Ju Ju means energy; the experience of positive and negative forces all
> around us that charge our lives and shape each unique day on this planet.
> You know Ju Ju. It’s that thing when you enter a space and get that “off”
> feeling in your gut telling you it’s time to leave, it’s the woman who
> smiled at you when you were crossing the street yesterday, the long, warm
> embrace of your loved ones, the sensation of sand between your toes walking
> on the shore. It’s the powerful stuff that we pick up on everywhere when we
> let our intuition take the reigns [sic]….
> ——
>
> Benjamin Barrett
> Formerly of Seattle, WA
>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>


-- 
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org