Why do we say ‘I’m in the doldrums’?
Origins of a dreary and dismal phrase.
Merriam-Webster gives this definition for ‘doldrums’
1: a spell of listlessness or despondency
2 often capitalized, oceanography : a part of the ocean near the equator abounding in calms, squalls, and light shifting winds
3: a state or period of inactivity, stagnation, or slump
Wiktionary suggests that the ‘dol’ in doldrums seems in old or middle English to mean ‘to make stupid’ — to be the opposite of sharp witted, to have a similar meaning to ‘dull’. In modern usage it suggests a feeling of being stuck, becalmed, listless, not getting anywhere, dull — “I can’t get going — I’m in the doldrums”.
What are the Doldrums?
wfmz.com says “The Doldrums are regions of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans that have little if any wind….(they are) located a little north of the equator, but the effects can be felt from 5 degrees north of the equator to 5 degrees south of it.” The rotation of the earth creates winds (called the Coriolis effect). Broadly, north of the equator, the winds flow in a clockwise direction and in the southern hemisphere, they flow anticlockwise. In both cases, they blow towards the equator and then from east to west near the equator.
