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The announcement marks the first time the dictionary publisher has elected a suffix, –ism, to the list to reflect the striking commonality its highest-ranking words shared this year
Merriam-Webster has released its top Words of the Year for 2015. The data-driven list was determined by two criteria: the words must show a high volume of lookups and a significant year-over-year increase in lookups via the brand’s website. The results shed light on topics and ideas which sparked the nation’s interest in 2015.
The decision marks the first time the dictionary publisher has afforded the said title to a suffix, which in this case is ‘–ism’ to reflect the striking commonality which its highest-ranking words shared this year. The most looked-up words across the aforementioned period ended in ‘–ism’.
The list of high-ranking -isms begins with the most searched word of the year, socialism, but includes also fascism, terrorism, racism, feminism, communism, and capitalism. Non -ism words looked up in large numbers include marriage, which peaked when the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples could marry nationwide, and minion, because of the hit movie The Minions.
“Socialism has been near the top of our online dictionary lookup list for several years. However, lookups this year moved up even further beginning with the July campaign events for Bernie Sanders, remaining high throughout the following months, and spiking again after the first Democratic debate in October,” said Peter Sokolowski, Editor-at-Large of Merriam-Webster.
Terrorism was frequently looked up during the past year, particularly following the attacks in Paris, Colorado Springs, and San Bernardino. Responses to those attacks, including Donald Trump’s comments about banning Muslims from entering the United States, also drove lookups of fascism.
Meanwhile, police violence, the South Carolina church shooting, and the University of Missouri protests were among the reasons that lookups of racism increased. Amy Schumer’s success, Hillary Clinton’s candidacy, and coverage of Caitlyn Jenner’s story contributed to spikes for the word feminism.
“These words reveal our curiosity and our engagement; we’re looking at the news through the prism of vocabulary. A definition can be the beginning of reflection. This year, we’ve certainly had a lot on our minds.” For more background on Merriam-Webster’s Words of the Year, see the complete list, slideshow, and video.
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