Monday word: pogrom

[ersatz-read.livejournal.com]

pogrom pō′grəm, noun
An organized persecution, purgative attack, or extinction of an ethnic group, especially of Jews.

Kristallnacht (1938) is an example of a pogrom.  Sadly, there are many examples of pogroms in in history (and in modern times), antisemitic and otherwise.  Related terms are ethnic cleasing and genocide.

Etymology:  Yiddish, from Russian pogromu, devastation or destruction.
The word first became common in English after anti-Jewish events in the Russian empire in the 1880s.

I was trying to find a relevant word for Memorial Day; my first choice -  cenotaph - had already been taken.

Comments

[prettygoodword.livejournal.com]

A worthy entry for the day.

---L.