5:2 samizdat

When and Where I found it: Again, I was in search of a funny word to give me a laugh and cheer up my mood. I googled "uncommon words" and clicked on http://wordsmith.org/words/roustabout.html. The word I selected was the word of the day for Oct. 3rd 2010, samizdat. Wordsmith.org (2010) retrieved from http://wordsmith.org/words/roustabout.html.

What it means: The term  samizdat is a noun and according to wordsmith.org means, an underground publishing system used to print and circulate banned literature. I just watched an episode of Boardwalk Empire on HBO and the show highlights the era of prohibition of the 1920's. Mr. Thompson creates samizdat's information on how to make and sell illegal alcohol in the show. (See my image of the bootlegging business)

My familiarity with the word: I have never heard the term before, however, I think it would be a great word to introduce to students when talking about revolutions. I could use this term for my SCALP project for the American Revolution and the information and text that was created during the time.

Should I Know this Term Well? Yes, I think that this is a highly specialized term that I could use when talking about certain periods in history. I think that this would be an interesting word to use with students to talk about underground activity.

Should Others Know This Word Well? No, I do not think that many people will specifically need to know this word. I feel the word is highly specialized and that the average person will not likely use this term.