Vomb
| From Fancyclopedia 2, ca. 1959 |
| "Dear Jack: I am surprised at ya. However, -- when anything is sort of -- well -- you know -- then it's vombic. Hence VOMBUS one who is vombic; Vombii plural of vombus. The Vombists are those belonging to the Society for the Advancement of Vombii...yrs, Jack Gillespie."
Another Futurian explained it thus: "If that chair you're sitting on turned into a stack of Bab-O at 15¢ for two cans, that would be Vombish." However, Ol' Doc Lowndes gave the real lowdown in Spaceways. "The vombis is an entity of intelligence fully equal, if not superior, to that of man, of a composition quite unknown tho some have made guesses, and possessing the ability to change form at will. So excellent a likeness can the vombis assume to any object or living thing, that, except in cases of malignancy [the vombii are not by nature malignant], it cannot be detected. One might scoff at this, and say, by virtue of this statement, the very typewriter on which I compose this article may be a vombis... for all I know, this typewriter is a vombis; my only reason for doubting it is, that in all the years I have known it, it has never acted contrary to the mechanical nature of typewriters." He goes on to cite cases in which vombii have taken the form of rocks, trees, swords, and even the water of a swimming pool. There is a "suggestion that the vombii are superhuman entities, well aware of man's existence, who are using man merely as a means of amusement or experimentation. It is they who have been the source of all man's legends and fairy tales, and they are what men have described as demons, ghouls, werewolves, vampires, elementals and wizards." Demoniac possession and the evocation of familiars are also mentioned; "Further things that the 'Song of Yste' [one of the sources of his data, the Necronomicon being another] mentions are too soul-shattering to be described here." In other words, the vombii are mighty medicine. Lowndes supplied a brief glossary of vombic terms, exempla gratia: Vombitate, to go around doing weird sinister things; Vombic, weird and sinister, pertaining to the vombis, unpredictable; Vombulate, to put on a Vombic attitude without actually doing anything vombic; Vombitoria, a vombic collection or repertoire; Evombulate, to give a vombic meaning to anything theretofore not considered vombic; Devombulate, to divest of vombic meaning; vombitor, a devotee of vombicism; le vombiteur (for those who prefer the French), see vombitor. Later Lowndes traced the word to the Cro-Magnon root "waahmb", indicated a sinister and incomprehensible emotion of fear or dread, which they associated with the Fortean rulers of the planet when they gained some slight awareness of them. A Roman scholar made up the Latin form, "vombis", whence "vombicism", the study and following, serious or whimsical, of things vombic. Lowndes published Le Vombiteur weekly for many issues, eventually letting it fade as most newszines do. |
| From Fancyclopedia 1, ca. 1944 |
| "Dear Jack: # I am surprized at ya. However -- when anything is sort of -- well you know -- then it's vombic. Hence VOMBUS one who is vombic; Vombii plural of vombus. The Vombists are those belonging to the Society for the advancement of Vombii. And I don't know where in th'hell you picked up 'vombish' # yrs, # Jack Gillespie".
Another Futurian explained it this way: 'If that chair you're sitting in turned into a stack of Bar-O at 15¢ for two cans, that would be Vombish.' However, Ol' Doc Lowndes gave the real lowdown in Spaceways. "The vombis is an entity of intelligence fully equal, if not superior, to that of man, of a composition as yet quite unknown though some have made guesses, and possessing the ability to change form at will. So excellent a likeness can the vombis assume to any object or living thing, that, except in cases of active malignancy [the vombii are not by nature malignant], it cannot be detected. One might scoff at this, and say, by virtue of this statement, the very typewriter on which I compose this article may be a vombis ... for all I know, this typewriter is a vombis; my only reason for doubting it is, that in all the years I have known it, it has never acted contrary to the mechanical nature of typewriters." He goes on to cite cases in which vombii have taken the form of trees, rocks, swords, and even the water of a swimming pool. There is "a suggestion that the vombi are superhuman entities, well aware of man's existence, who are using men merely as a means of amusement or experimentation. It is they who have been the sources of all man's legends and fairy tales, and they are what men have described as demons, ghouls, werewolves, vampires, elementals, and wizards." Demoniac possession and the evocation of familiars are also mentioned; "Further things that the 'Song of Yste' [one of the sources of his data, the Necronomicon being another] mentions are too soul-shattering to describe here." In other words, the vombii are mighty medicine. Lowndes supplied a brief glossary of vombic terms, as follows: vombic - weird and sinister, pertaining to the vombis, unpredictable. # vomb - to impart a shuddery feeling, to fill with nameless dread, to arouse terrifying suspicions, to make one feel as if one were in direct contact with a vombis # vombitate - to go around in doing weird sinister things # vombitation - the act of vombitating, actions without apparent human motives # vombulation - a vombic manner without action # vombulate - to put on a vombic attitude, without actual doing anything vombic # vombification - the act of vombing, or vombifying; "vombify" being much more commonly used than "vomb" # vombosia - an indescrible malady, seemingly without cause, and having vombic effects upon the victim # vombitoria - a vombic collection or repertoire # vombitude - the degree to which any person, place, or thing is vombic # vombosis - an examination into, or evaluation of the vombitude of any vombitoria, evombification # evomb or evombify - to determine the vombitude of anything described as "vombic", to hold a vombosis # evombulate - to give a vombic meaning to anything heretofore not considered as vombic # devombulate - to divest of vombic meaning # prevombic - referring to a conception of horror; a strangeness; before the vogue of vombicism # vombique - precious, a term of contempt for would-be vombicism, puerile attempts at horror, etc. # vombitor - a devotee of vombicism # le vombiteur - (for those who prefer the French; see vombitor). Later Lowndes traced the root back to "waahhmb", a Cro-Magnon sound indicating a sinister and incomprehensible emotion of fear or dread, which they associated with the Fortean rulers of the planet when they gained some slite awareness of them. A Roman scholar made up the Latin form, "vombis" (vombis, vombitis, vombiti, vombitem, vombite; vombi, vombitorum, vombitibus, vombis, vombitibus; verb: vombo, vombere, vombivi, vombitus). In the same article, the word "vombicism" was defined as the study and following, serious or whimsical or both, of things vombic. |
See Le Vombiteur, Creatures of Fandom.
| Fanspeak | 1930s |
| This is a fanspeak page. Please extend it by adding information about when and by whom it was coined, whether it’s still in use, etc. |
