28 September 2016
rara avis
[rair-uh ey-vis; Latin rah-rah ah-wis]
noun, plural rarae aves [rair-ee ey-veez; Latin rah-rahy ah-wes] (Show IPA)
1. a rare person or thing; rarity.
Origin of rara avis
Latin
1600-1610; < Latin rāra avis rare bird
Dictionary.com
Examples from the Web for rara avis
Contemporary Examples
The Goldfinch proves Tartt to be a rara avis; her own species, willingly chained to her demanding muse.
Time Bandit: Donna Tartt’s “Goldfinch”
Liesl Schillinger
October 22, 2013
He is that rara avis, the politician who writes his own books.
Sorry, Dad, I’m Voting for Obama
Christopher Buckley
October 9, 2008
Historical Examples
Carey always declared that he was that rara avis an atheist, and that he had been born an atheist.
The Woman With The Fan
Robert Hichens
Today’s quote
I wrote my first novel because I wanted to read it.
– Toni Morrison
On this day
28 September 551BC – birth of Confucius, Chinese teacher and philosopher, founder of Confucianism. Died 479BC.
28 September 1330 – birth of Nicholas Flamel, French alchemist who purportedly made it his life’s work to decode a mysterious book, known as Book of Abramelin the Mage. Some believe he decoded the recipe for the Philosopher’s Stone, which could turn base metals into silver and gold, and was said to be the elixir of life. Died 22 March 1418(?) He was seen at least 3 times after his death, which led to rumour that he had produced the elixir of life and was therefore immortal. He has been immortalised in numerous books and movies, including ‘Harry Potter‘ by J.K. Rowling, and the ‘Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel‘ series by Michael Scott.
28 September 1864 – The birth of Revolutionary Marxism following a meeting at St Martin’s Hall in London of delegates from different countries in an effort to unify the various left-wing groups comprised of communists, socialists, anarchists and trade unionists. The meeting resulted in the founding of the International Workingmen’s Association or First International. The First International was headquartered in London and directed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels who had long stated that the working class struggle had to be supported internationally or would fail.
28 September 1872 – birth of David Uniapon, indigenous preacher, author and inventor. He is on the Australian $50 note. David influenced government decision making regarding aboriginal issues and invented a hand-piece for shearing sheep. Died 7 February 1967.
28 September 1895 – death of Louis Pasteur, French bacteriologist, one of the founders of microbiology. Invented the process for preventing milk and wine from causing sickness, known as pasteurisation. (Not entirely fool-proof, as over-imbibing wine still seems to cause sickness in some). Born 27 December 1822.
28 September 1967 – birth of Moon Unit Zappa, American musician. Son of legendary musician, Frank Zappa.