Apricity: The warmth of the sun in winter

I was trying to find a word this week to describe my frustration with the winter in my city. The sun has broken through this week, I realized that the days were getting longer. The warming of the city broke through the clouds. I had this yearning for Spring. I found the word to describe this sensation. Apricity is the warmth of the sun in winter. Love that word.

From the Latin “apricari” (to bask in the sun).

Apricity appears to have entered our language in 1623 when Henry Cockeram recorded (or possibly invented) it for his dictionary The English Dictionary; or, An Interpreter of Hard English Words. Despite the fact that it is a delightful word for a delightful thing it never quite caught on, and will not be found in any modern dictionary aside from the Oxford English Dictionary.

Fun Fact: In countries such as Canada it’s mandatory for all dairy milk to be fortified with vitamin D to keep general levels up.