Oddball Stuff You Should Know

[oneh2obabe]

[my5cents]

OK, here’s a word..

Do you know the correct name for the “pass through” from the seating area of an arena and the concourse ?

“Vomitorium”. I’ve known of the word for many years. What I didn’t know was how it got it’s name.

I thought the word, which was coined in ancient Rome, came from “a passage way so one could exit the arena to vomit”. Considering some of the stories we’ve hear of what went on in the Roman coliseum that sorta made sense.

In reading up on the word I discovered that some, who knew the word, “vomitorium” and knowing the Roman propensity for over eating and then vomiting to make room for more food, thought a “vomitorium” was a room where people went to vomit.

My definition was more correct, but only the exiting of the arena part, it had nothing to do with stomach content.

The word 'vomitorium' does indeed come from the Latin root 'vomere' meaning 'to vomit' or 'to spew forth'. But it does not refer to the contents of one's stomach. A vomitorium is actually a passage or opening in a theatre (or amphitheatre), leading to or from the seating, through which the audience members would pass.

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]

[oneh2obabe]