This archive report was first published on 10 August 2019.
On July 31, a sub-editor's headline in the Daily Nation sparked a question about the meaning of decimate. The sub-editor asked if to decimate means to annihilate, and if cancer could decimate an entire nation.
However, to decimate is to reduce a number or quantity by only 10 parts in 100, or by one part in 10. This is a far cry from annihilating, which means to reduce to nothing.
The word decimate comes from the Latin noun decem, which means 10. This is also the root of the word December, which was originally the 10th month of the year.
But why did the language of England come to call December the 12th month, when it was originally the 10th? The answer lies in the history of the language, and how the native speakers of England came to depend on the word.
It's a fascinating story of how words and meanings can change over time, and how our understanding of language can be influenced by our cultural and historical context.
So, the next time you hear someone say that cancer is decimating a nation, remember that it's not a matter of wiping out an entire population, but rather a reduction of one tenth.
Philip Ochieng is a veteran journalist.
