Wednesday, January 15, 2014

To me, it isn't her 107th birthday

Google had a doodle for Grace Hopper's 107th birthday a couple weeks ago.  She died in 1992.

Birthday is defined as "the annual anniversary of the day on which a person was born, typically treated as an occasion for celebration and present-giving."

Anniversary is defined as "the date on which an event took place in a previous year."

So technically, I guess it could be considered her birthday.  It is the anniversary of the day she was born.  But if there isn't going to be celebrating, or gift-giving, to me it's not a birthday. 

I find it confusing to state it's someone's birthday after they've died.  Granted, when it's George Washington's "birthday" or that of Isaac Newton, I know they are long dead.

But the first assumption I make is that the person is still alive.  Even 107 isn't outside the realm of possibility. 

So I am disappointed when I discover that this person is actually dead.  Often, long dead. 

Can we please just call these occasions "birth anniversaries"?

Or if we want to coin a new word - birthaversary. 

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