In Latin, “vivere” means “to live” and “vita” means “life.” Many words in English contain the
roots viv and vit and pertain to the qualities we associate with the life force. A vivacious person
is lively, animated, spirited, in short, characterized by vivacity. A person or a gathering could be
described as convivial. Since the prefix con means “with,” it makes sense that conviviality
conveys as sense of “living with” or “being lively with.” A restaurant with a convivial
atmosphere would be lively, friendly, relaxed and fun. The root viv also appears in vivid, which
conveys a sense of being full of life, energetic, or striking. A bright color can be described as
vivid, as can an intensely experienced memory, or a highly expressive passage of writing. A
vivid description of an event allows those who did not experience it to imagine it in detail.
The prefix re means “back” or “again,” so to revive something is to bring it back to life. You
can revive a person who has fainted or revive a tradition that has faded away. The prefix sur
means “over,” “above,” or “beyond” so to survive is to live beyond. A person can survive an
ordeal just as an ancient building, like the temples of the ancient Greeks, can survive centuries of
wear, war, and weather. A survivalist is a person who is preoccupied with surviving future
disasters; they tend to stockpile a lot of canned beans!
The root vit, from the Latin word for life (vita) appears in English words like vital (meaning
essential, even essential to life itself), longevity, duration of life over time, and nativity,
meaning “birth.” A native of a given place is a person who was born there. Vitality and
vivacity are closely related descriptors, meaning lively, energetic, brimming with vigor.
Author: Carol J. Cook
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