Published: November 26, 2021
By: Mark Lungariello and Jon Levine
The emergence of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has international health experts worried, financial markets roiled and the Internet confused over how the new name was chosen.
 |
| The World Health Organization dubbed the next coronavirus variant rising in South Africa as Omicron. - REUTERS/Denis Balibouse |
The World Health Organization appeared to skip two letters in the Greek alphabet when it announced Friday the name for the latest coronavirus variant, which was first identified in South Africa.
Nu and Xi were apparently the next letters in the Greek alphabet that have yet to be used for a variant, according to data on their website.
Internet pundits and politicians speculated that the group skipped Nu to avoid confusion with the word “new” and passed on Xi because of its written similarity to the name of Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
“If the WHO is this scared of the Chinese Communist Party, how can they be trusted to call them out next time they’re trying to cover up a catastrophic global pandemic?” Cruz sniped in a criticism of the country’s role in the outbreak.
Wall Street Journal language columnist Ben Zimmer had a different take.
“Kudos to the WHO for skipping over the potentially confusing Nu and Xi names and going straight to Omicron,” he wrote.
 |
| Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) retweeted a Telegraph editor who cited a WHO source saying Xi was skipped to “avoid stigmatizing a region.” |
Others joked about the apparent choice after many media outlets had prematurely started calling the Omicron variant “Nu.”
“As a letter enthusiast, I feel sad for Nu and Xi not getting their moments,” tweeted one user. “I get it, but it’s still a bummer.”
“No sorry we’re not calling the new COVID strain ‘nu variant’, are we?,” another said. “I refuse to have my Christmas cancelled by something that shares and epithet with a playlist featuring Limp Bizkit.”
 |
| The World Health Organization has already named several COVID-19 variants with Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta. - REUTERS/Denis Balibouse |
The WHO has been using Greek letters such as Alpha, Beta and Delta to describe the variants, saying on its website it would “be easier and more practical to be discussed by non-scientific audiences.” Omicron is the fifth variant to be designated a variant of concern by WHO, which also gave the designation for Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta. The Lambda, Epsilon and Mu variants have all also made headlines.
Discerning the Mystery is a website dedicated to awakening and educating the people to their true potential of mental, spiritual, emotional, and physical growth. It can be difficult work, but if just one person benefits from these efforts, it is entirely worth it.
If you enjoy what you read here, please give the post a like and share on social media. Also, if you enjoyed this article, please consider leaving a donation.
If you enjoy what you read here, please give the post a like and share on social media. Also, if you enjoyed this article, please consider leaving a donation.
Feel free to send us an email and tell us what you think. If you have any suggestions or subjects you would like to see discussed, please let us know.
Thank you for your support.
No comments:
Post a Comment