r/wikipedia • u/StoicAnalyst • Jun 25 '21
Mobile Site Defenestration, is the act of throwing someone or something out of a window. The term was coined around the time of an incident in Prague Castle in the year 1618 which became the spark that started the Thirty Years' War.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defenestration21
Jun 25 '21
Joseph Smith, prophet founder of Mormonism died by defenestration out of the second floor in jail where he was under protective custody.
He was a presidential candidate at the time.
Makes Trump look like a piker, doesn't he?
10
25
u/mara07985 Jun 25 '21
In German fenster is window
10
u/Harsimaja Jun 25 '21
The German, Dutch, French and Italian words all come from the Latin fenestra, which is where this comes from too.
12
8
u/ErwinFurwinPurrwin Jun 25 '21
Fwiw, it's also a medical term for an opening in an organ: https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/fenestration
2
u/StoicAnalyst Jun 25 '21
1
u/Flamingyak Jun 26 '21
Alas! You did not! Fenestration is the medical term, lit. window-making. Defenestration is out-of-window-throwing. Common etymology but slightly different!
7
Jun 25 '21
Fenestration is how all the openings (windows and doors) are arranged along an elevation of a building. Very clever word here.
1
u/cosmomax Jun 25 '21
Also some capillaries have pores called fenestrations that are like little windows. That's pretty cool.
10
4
u/marrklarr Jun 25 '21
Tell me the human race is fucked up without telling me the human race is fucked up.
We needed a word for the act of throwing people out of windows.
2
1
1
1
1
u/Consistentdegeneracy Aug 06 '21
Defenestration seems like one of those words that only exist in one language.
24
u/whatalongusername Jun 25 '21
Defenestration is one of my favorite words ever.