Xanadu, what an utterly unique and radically awesome (at least according to the 1980’s musical…Where time stops and the magic never ends.) word. It’s origins tend to come from Samuel Taylor Coleridge poem “Kubla Khan; or, A Vision in a Dream: A Fragment”. In it He describes Xanadu, the the summer capital of the Mongol ruler “In Xanadu did Kubla Khan /A stately pleasure-dome decree: / Where Alph, the sacred river, ran /Through caverns measureless to man /Down to a sunless sea.“. Xanadu is a place of idyllic, ethereal, magnificent charms and delights, yet like so many places it has it’s darkness, it’s contrasts and struggles. Xanadu its self is a place where few can reach and even fewer can maintain, yet to savor even a glimpse of such a things is worth the attempt. Yet, one can’t help but wonder if perhaps Xanadu isn’t quite so difficult to discover, if one only opens their hearts and eyes to the wonders that already exist.
Xanadu is a truly fine word, and with it I finally have a word that starts with X, so huzzah!
*Check out the Word Nerd Index and my Word Nerd Pinterest Board for other superb words!
** If there’s a word you’d like to see added to the Word Nerd roster, please feel free to drop me a line or suggest it in the comments – I love feedback and recommendations!
Lawhimsy 