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The Traveller's Lexicon: Fernweh
A German word for longing for places you have not been.
Fernweh (German; roughly “FAIRN-vay”) combines fern, meaning far, with Weh, meaning ache or pain. It names the longing for distant places, and is often described as the opposite of homesickness.
It is a useful word for January, when many of us decide where we want to go this year. Like many words it does not translate neatly, and it is best not to treat it as a stand-in for a whole culture.
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