adjutant — one who assists or helps
ayudante — the Spanish cognate of the same meaning
At first glance, you might not think these two words are cognates because of the variations in their spellings, but they are. “Cognate,” by definition, simply means that things are related by a common ancestor, and these two words descend from the same Latin word of adjūtāre.
Knowing that the job of an “adjutant” is to “help” someone else, makes learning and remembering the very common Spanish verb of “ayudar” much easier. “Ayudar” means “to help.” Clearly, “help” and “ayuda” are NOT cognates. That’s because “help” comes straight to us from Old English while “ayuda” traveled straight into Spanish from its ancestor language of Latin.
However, in English, we DO use the word “adjutant” and even the word “adjuvant” — albeit in a lesser fashion — to mean “one who helps” or something that helps. Those words are cognates of “ayudante.” If you study Spanish, the word “ayudar” comes up early in vocabulary lists because we all need “help” at some point.
Another word that deals with helping is the word “auxiliary.” That, too, has a Spanish cognate in the word “auxiliar.” Those descend from Latin’s auxilium, which means “help.” While “auxiliary” has many definitions, its first one focuses on the aspect of “help.”
If you are ever in a Spanish-speaking country and find yourself in sudden, urgent need of “help,” simply shout “Auxilio!.” That’s like shouting “Help!” in an English-speaking country. You don’t need to understand all the Spanish in this cartoon to realize that the guy being chased by an ax-wielding maniac is in need of help or of “auxilio.”
Ironically, the word “adjutant” which etymologically should only refer to someone in a helping capacity, like an aide, can also refer to a military officer, so when someone decided to first name a type of stork who walks with a stiff marching gait, they called it the “adjutant stork.” This is not a “helping” stork, but it’s a funny image when you think about the history of the word “adjutant.” Where can I get me an adjutant stork to help me out around the house? Ha ha.
adjutant stork — Click this link for old footage of an adjutant stork walking if interested.
I hope you’ve found this entry of “Cognate Cognizance” helpful. I’m glad to serve as an “adjutant” to your understanding of words.
Friendly reminder, though, that next week’s issue will only go out to the paying subscribers, so if you haven’t upgraded your subscription yet, please do so. That way you “help” me continue to “help” you.
Thanks. Until next time.
Tammy Marshall
Adjutant