rcj (12/21/82)
I was put onto the book "Mrs. Byrne's Dictionary of Obscure, Unusual, and Preposterous Words" by several people on the net. For those inter- ested in the subject, it is an absolute gem! I have ordered my own copy from a local bookstore after checking it out from the library. I never would have suspected that there were words for things like "a government by prostitutes" (pornocracy), or "fear of virgins" (parthenophobia). I recommend this book highly. And, speaking of phobias, I had been collecting them for quite some time, and had about 3/4 of what follows; Mrs. Byrne is due thanks for the rest: acarophobia -------- fear of itching or of those insects that cause it acousticophobia ---- fear of noise acrophobia --------- fear of heights aelurophobia ------- fear of cats agoraphobia -------- fear of public and/or open places agyiophobia -------- fear of crossing busy streets aibohphobia -------- fear of palindromes :-) * algophobia --------- fear of pain amathophobia ------- fear of dust amaxophobia -------- fear of riding in a car ambulophobia ------- fear of walking anthropophobia ----- fear of meeting people -- fear of society anuptaphobia ------- fear of staying single atychiphobia ------- fear of failure automysophobia ----- fear of being dirty autophobia --------- fear of oneself or of being alone ballistophobia ----- fear of missiles or of being shot basophobia --------- inability to stand due to fear of falling batophobia --------- fear of heights or of being close to tall buildings belonephobia ------- fear of pins and needles bolshephobia ------- fear of Bolshevism (slang) bromidrosiphobia --- fear of body smells brontophobia ------- fear of thunderstorms catagelophobia ----- fear of being ridiculed cathisophobia ------ fear of sitting cenophobia --------- fear of empty spaces cherophobia -------- fear of gaiety chrematophobia ----- fear of money cibophobia --------- fear of food claustrophobia ----- fear of closed spaces climacophobia ------ fear of falling down stairs cynophobia --------- fear of dogs dikephobia --------- fear of justice domatophobia ------- fear of being house-bound dystychiphobia ----- fear of accidents ecophobia ---------- fear of home enissophobia ------- fear of being reproached enosiophobia ------- fear of having committed an unpardonable sin eosophobia --------- fear of dawn eremophobia -------- fear of loneliness ergasiophobia ------ fear of work or a surgeon's fear of operating in spite of demonstrable need erotophobia -------- fear of sexual love erythrophobia ------ fear of red lights or of blushing flamophobia -------- fear of posting tongue twisters to net.general :-) gamophobia --------- fear of marriage gephyrophobia ------ fear of crossing bridges gerascophobia ------ fear of growing old gymnophobia -------- fear of nudity hamartophobia ------ fear of sin or sinning harpaxophobia ------ fear of robbers or of being robbed helminthophobia ---- fear of being, or becoming, infested with worms hodophobia --------- fear of road travel homichlophobia ----- fear of fog homophobia --------- fear of sameness or monotony hydrophobophobia --- fear of hydrophobia hygrophobia -------- fear of liquids (fear of water, usually) hypengyophobia ----- fear of responsibility hypophobia --------- fear of nothing -- lack of fear iophobia ----------- fear of being poisoned kakorrhaphiophobia - fear of failure kenophobia --------- fear of empty or open spaces keraunophobia ------ fear of thunder and lightning kinesophobia ------- fear of movement kopophobia --------- fear of physical or mental exhaustion laliophobia -------- fear of speaking ligyrophobia ------- fear of loud noises lilapsophobia ------ fear of tornadoes linonophobia ------- fear of string lygophobia --------- fear of the dark lyssophobia -------- fear of becoming insane macrophobia -------- fear of long waits maieusiophobia ----- fear of childbirth maniaphobia -------- fear of insanity mastigophobia ------ fear of punishment mechanophobia ------ fear of machines megalophobia ------- fear of large things melissophobia ------ fear of bees melophobia --------- fear of (hatred of) music metrophobia -------- fear of (hatred of) poetry molysmophobia ------ fear of dirt or contamination monophobia --------- fear of being alone muriphobia --------- fear of mice mysophobia --------- fear of dirt or contamination; compulsive hand-washing nebulaphobia ------- fear of fog nosophobia --------- fear of becoming ill novercaphobia ------ fear of a step-mother ochlophobia -------- fear of crowds odynophobia -------- fear of pain ombrophobia -------- fear of rain or of being rained upon onomatophobia ------ fear of hearing a certain word ophidiophobia ------ fear of snakes opthalmophobia ----- fear of being stared at orthophobia -------- fear of propriety osmophobia --------- fear of smells panthophobia ------- fear of suffering and disease pantophobia -------- fear of everything -- utter cowardice papaphobia --------- fear of the pope paralipophobia ----- fear of responsibility parthenophobia ----- fear of virgins peccatophobia ------ fear of having committed an imaginary crime pediculophobia ----- fear of lice peniaphobia -------- fear of poverty pentheraphobia ----- fear of one's mother-in-law philophobia -------- fear of falling in love or of being loved phobophobia -------- fear of phobias -- fear of fear itself phonophobia -------- fear of noise, voices, or speaking aloud phthiriophobia ----- fear of lice placophobia -------- fear of tombstones pluviophobia ------- fear of rain or of being rained upon pnigophobia -------- fear of choking in one's sleep ponophobia --------- fear of overworking prosophobia -------- fear of progress psellismophobia ---- fear of stuttering pteronophobia ------ fear of being tickled with a feather rhabdophobia ------- fear of being punished or severely criticized scopophobia -------- fear of being seen scotophobia -------- fear of the dark septophobia -------- fear of decaying matter siderodromophobia -- fear of train travel sitophobia --------- fear of eating soceraphobia ------- fear of one's parent's-in-law sociophobia -------- fear of friendship or society in general sophophobia -------- fear of learning spectrophobia ------ fear of looking into a mirror stasibasiphobia ---- fear of standing and/or walking staurophobia ------- fear of the crucifix stenophobia -------- fear of narrow things or places stygiophobia ------- fear of hell syngenesophobia ---- fear of relatives taphephobia -------- fear of being buried alive or of cemeteries tapinophobia ------- fear of being contagious technophobia ------- fear of arts and crafts teleophobia -------- fear of definite plans or of religious ceremonies teratophobia ------- fear of bearing a deformed child teutophobia -------- fear of Germans or of anything German thalassophobia ----- fear of the sea thanatophobia ------ fear of death or of dying theologicophobia --- fear of theology theophobia --------- fear of gods and/or religions tocophobia --------- fear of pregnancy and/or childbirth tonitrophobia ------ fear of thunder topophobia --------- fear of a/certain place(s) traumatophobia ----- fear of injury triskadekaphobia --- fear of the number 13 tropophobia -------- fear of making changes or of change itself uranophobia -------- fear of heaven verbophobia -------- fear of words vitricophobia ------ fear of one's stepfather xenophobia --------- fear of strangers and/or foreigners xerophobia --------- fear of drought xylophobia --------- fear of wood, wooden objects, and/or forests zoophobia ---------- fear of animals You may, of course, substitute "extreme dislike of" for "fear of" in almost every definition. If anyone has any that are not in this list I would greatly appreciate you dropping me a line via electronic mail. Thanx in advance and happy reading, Curtis Jackson (...!floyd!burl!rcj)