In a year of high voltage for the markets like 2022, looking for the word that has marked the year the most in economic terms is, to say the least, difficult. In the Spanish case, the Fundación del Español Urgente (FundéuRAE) has 12 candidates to win this award, which a year earlier went to the vaccine.
Among the nominees stand out inflation and cryptocurrency. The unbridled escalation of prices derived from the war between Russia and Ukraine and its impact on raw materials, especially energy, is having a strong impact on the shopping cart at a time when consumers are also facing higher prices for variable-rate mortgages in the face of rising rates. The Fundéu also mentions other terms derived from inflation, such as reduflation – a process in which goods are reduced in size or quantity, while their prices remain the same or increase–, stagflation – price increases in an environment of economic stagnation– and hyperinflation – its uncontrolled rise.
Of these, the reduction has been imposed this year among consumer brands. Brands like Nestlé, Toblerone and Doritos have turned to it to avoid the blow of inflation and not have to raise prices for consumers. In June, the OCU consumer organization denounced six companies, Pastas Gallo, Danone, Pescanova, ColaCao, Tulipán and Campofrío, for this practice before the CNMC.
Although, Danone denied the accusation. The bankruptcy of FTX adds to the problems of other crypto-asset platforms and to the strong depreciation accumulated by digital assets since the highs reached just a year ago. Some problems that have caused cryptocurrency to be among the proposals of the Fundéu, which has expanded the meaning of the word crypto from “hidden, covert”, to apply it to the voices that have to do with digital transactions that are secured by cryptography.
With this, he points out, other terms have been formed, such as crypto-scam or crypto-business. The war started by Russia in Ukraine has prompted two other proposals for the Fundéu’s word of the year 2022: gas pipeline and bumping. The rise in natural gas prices and the fear that European countries would not have enough supply to get through the year have marked the current news in recent months.
The negotiations between the different countries of the euro zone to cap the price of natural gas from Russia, and even the political proposal to limit the price of food are behind the candidacy to cap. The commitment to green mobility is to blame for the proposal for the term gigafactory, which, according to the Fundéu, are car battery factories that can store 1 gigawatt hour. To all of them are added other terms such as apocalypse, diversity, ecocide, flu, artificial intelligence, sex-doping or Ukrainian.
Among English speakers, for its part, the Economist magazine recently pointed to terms such as zero Covid or metaverse. Although for Oxford Dictionaries the expression of 2022 is goblin mode (goblin mode), a term that refers to “a type of behavior that is unapologetically self-indulgent, lazy, careless or greedy.” ‘Goblin mode’ is the concept chosen by Oxford Dictionarities for 2022 ‘Metaverse’ fails to attract the interest of English speakers
‘Puntocom’ enters the dictionary of the RAE
Upgrade. The latest update of the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) incorporates 3,152 modifications between additions of terms, amendments to articles or additions of definitions. Among the new words that enter the dictionary is dotcom, an already classic term in the economic press that has now found its own seat.
technological terms. The technological language is the one that includes the most additions in this year’s review. Among the novelties are crowdfunding, big data, electronic commerce, planned obsolescence or useful life. Voices such as data mining or gamer are also included, which until now were not included in the dictionary.
Micromachismo. Among the novelties presented by the RAE are also forty-year-old, habemus, copiota or gap, terms that were not included. In the field of gastronomy, voices such as panetone or compango are also incorporated.
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