1 January 2016

bombilate

[bom-bee-leyt]

verb

– to hum or buzz

derivatives

noun – bombilation
third-person singular simple present bombilates, present participle bombilating, simple past and past participle bombilated

Origin

Late 19th century: from medieval Latin bombilare ‘to buzz’, from Latin bombus ‘humming’ (see bomb).

Anagram

albeit mob
beat limbo

Today’s quote

The idea of freedom is inspiring. But what does it mean? If you are free in a political sense but have no food, what’s that? The freedom to starve?

― Angela Y. Davis

On this day

1 January – the eighth day of the 12 days of Christmas (Western Christianity).

1 January – the official birthday for all thoroughbred horses in the Northern Hemisphere. (see 1 August for Southern Hemisphere).

1 January 1901 – Federation of Australia. The six self-governing colonies in Australia formed a single nation known as the Commonwealth of Australia.

1 January 1915 – Battle of Broken Hill. Two Turkish men shot dead four people and wounded seven others in the remote Australian town of Broken Hill, New South Wales. They claimed it was in relation to ongoing hostilities between the Ottoman Empire and the British Empire.

1 January 1942 – the United Nations is established by representatives of 26 nations in order to enforce peace-keeping campaigns throughout the world. There are now 193 member states and 2 non-member states (the Holy See and Palestine).

1 January 1959 – Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista flees Cuba following a revolution led by Fidel Castro. Batista allegedly fled with around $700 million of art and cash, the result of graft and corruption.

1 January 1985 – the UK’s first mobile phone call is made by British comedian, Ernie Wise (from ‘Morecombe and Wise’), to Vodafone.