Twenty-first International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities

Abstract

According to an analysis released by the Global Language Monitor – GLM, the historic election of Barack Obama to the Presidency of the United States topped all major news stories since the year 2000. Citations of Barack Obama in the global print and electronic media, on the Internet, and throughout the blogosphere more than doubled the other main stories of the 2000-2009 decade combined (for example, the Iraq War, Beijing Olympics, the September 11th terrorist attacks, the Asian Tsunami). However, Paul J. Payack noted that “if you included ‘Obama-’ as a root word, Obama- in its many forms (Obamacare, Obamamania, Obamanomics), would have overtaken both ‘change’ and ‘bailout’ [the most popular words] for the top spot.” Undoubtedly, Barack and Obama-based neologisms have enriched the English language and inspired such books as “Obamanomics and Francisconomics.” Their definitions are reminiscent of the mixed feelings about the first black president of the USA. These neologisms and many things named after the 44th POTUS are part of what the U.S. presidential historian Douglas Brinkley calls “the opening salvos in the Obama naming marathon” (Woodyard, 2019). More importantly, this naming marathon has resulted in such award-winning books as “Obamanomics and Francisconomics” (Gbotokuma 2022) and “Obamapedia,” a special Barack Obama-based glossary (my work in progress).