In language, an archaism is a word, a meaning of a word, or a way of speaking or writing that was used in a time long ago, before people today were born. However, these words or styles are still used in some special situations, like in religion or law. Lexical archaisms are old words or phrases that are still used regularly in certain areas, such as law or religion, or used freely in some cases. Literary archaism is when old language appears in traditional stories or poems, like nursery rhymes, or when writers intentionally use a style from a past time, such as in the 1960 book The Sot-Weed Factor, where the author uses a style from the 18th century. Some archaic words or phrases have strong emotional meanings—some are funny (like "forsooth"), some are very formal (like "What say you?"), and some are serious (like "With thee do I plight my troth"). The word "archaism" comes from the Ancient Greek word archaïkós, meaning "old-fashioned" or "ancient," which itself comes from archaîos, meaning "from the beginning" or "ancient."

Dictionaries often separate archaic words from obsolete words. An archaic word or meaning is still used in some ways, but only in special or limited situations. It sounds old-fashioned when used outside those situations. In contrast, an obsolete word or meaning is no longer used at all. Readers may find these words in very old texts, such as the works of Shakespeare, where special notes (called glosses) are often added in the margins to explain them.

Archaisms can be used on purpose to create a certain effect, or they can be part of special language used in certain jobs (like in law) or in set phrases (like in religious traditions). Many nursery rhymes include archaisms. Some archaisms, called fossil words, are only used in certain fixed phrases, even though they are not used in everyday language. For example, the word "vim" is only used in the phrase "vim and vigor."

A language that is no longer up-to-date is called archaic. In contrast, a language or dialect that has many old features (archaisms) compared to similar languages or dialects spoken at the same time is called conservative.

Usage

Archaisms are often found in history, poetry, fantasy stories, law, philosophy, science, technology, geography, and in special types of writing and speech. These old words are kept in use because of their roles in rituals, literature, and the study of older texts. If people continue to recognize them, archaisms may be used again in the future.

Science and technology create many new words and phrases that become outdated quickly. However, some old terms stay in use because of the feelings they evoke. For example, the word "wireless" was used during the Second World War to describe radio technology in Britain. In recent years, "wireless" has been used again to describe modern technologies like Wi-Fi and cell phones.

People sometimes use old place names to connect with the past or when the new name is not widely accepted. For example, some may use "Madras" instead of "Chennai" or call a restaurant "Old Bombay" to suggest a connection to history. The airline Cathay Pacific uses the old name "Cathay" to refer to China.

Archaisms are often misunderstood, leading to changes in how they are used. For example, the phrase "odd man out" originally meant finding the person who does not fit in. Over time, the phrase was misinterpreted so that "out" now describes the person instead of being part of a verb.

Legal writing includes words like "heretofore" and "thereof," which are examples of archaisms used as specialized language. Religious texts often use phrases like "With this ring I thee wed," which are not used in everyday speech. Archaisms are also used in historical novels to create the feel of a past time. Some archaisms are used for humor.

Examples

A type of archaism is the use of "thou," a second-person singular pronoun that was no longer commonly used after the 17th century. The word "you" was originally used only to address groups of people or to show respect to individuals, but now it is used to address both individuals and groups. "Thou" is the form used when the subject is performing an action (nominative form). The form "thee" is used when the pronoun is receiving an action (object form), and "thy" or "thine" are used to show possession.

Archaisms often remain in proverbs because they are easier to say and sound natural. They use two of the four main rhetorical techniques: rearranging words (permutation) and adding extra words (addition).