Fifty Words for Snow

‘A delightful compendium that brings together language, culture and adventure through frozen landscapes as it shares the meanings behind 50 words for snow, gathered from around the globe.’ – The Herald, Christmas Books 2020
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Snow. Every language has its own words for the feather-like flakes that come from the sky. In Japanese we find Yuki-onna – a ‘snow woman’ who drifts through the frosted land. In Icelandic falls Hundslappadrifa – ‘big as a dog’s paw’. And in Maori we meet Huka-rere – ‘one of the children of rain and wind’.

From mountain tops and frozen seas to city parks and desert hills, writer and Arctic traveller Nancy Campbell digs deep into the meanings of fifty words for snow. Under her gaze, each of these linguistic snow crystals offers a whole world of myth and story.
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‘Absolutely exquisite. This little book is a work of art. It is impossible to imagine the reader who will not love it.’ – Horatio Clare, author of The Light in the Dark: A Winter Journal

‘Sparkles and dazzles with new meanings and old magic. You’ll never see snow in the same way again.’ – Matt Gaw, author of Under the Stars: A Journey Into Light