7

My wife was working on her lines for a play (Dracula) set in the early 1900s and one line caught my eye. It referred to the desanguination of the vampire’s victims. I’d always heard the term as exsanguination and never heard of desangination. A few quick Google searches seem to indicate that desanguination is perhaps more archaic.

The questions are these:

  1. Is desanguination considered archaic? For how long? Which word would have most likely been used by a doctor (the character in the play) circa 1900?

  2. Are there any subtle differences in meaning between the two? If so, which seems more relevant to the results of a vampire attack?

How’s that for a topical question on Halloween week?

Improve this question

6 Answers 6

Reset to default
6

As your google search probably indicated, desanguination is used very, very rarely. Perhaps more strikingly, the OED doesn’t have a single reference to it, which suggests that it isn’t being used much historically, either. By contrast, the OED gives several citations for the word exsanguinate in the mid-1800s, so the word was certainly in use by 1900.

Improve this answer
4

Could the difference be that, if one exsanguinates, their blood flows out of their body as a result of a wound; if one is a victim of desanguination, their blood is drawn out of their body and sucked in by another (the vampire)?

Improve this answer
2
  • 3
    I thought I was the one asking the question.
    – JohnFx
    Commented Oct 25, 2010 at 17:54
  • 3
    This would be my thought, too: just based on the usual uses of "de-" vs. "ex-", the former implies an outside agent, while the latter does not. Or to put it another way, exsanguination us something that happens to a person, while desanguination is something that is done to a person.
    – Marthaª
    Commented Oct 25, 2010 at 18:17
1

Exsanguination is commonly used in the Emergency Medical field.

Improve this answer
0
0

The word was used by the character "Howard Hunter" in the 2nd series episode 3 c1981, of the American TV police drama "Hill St Blues" To describe a shot man who was unable to be approached and given medical aid. So I guess that the word was actually describing the loss of blood.

Improve this answer
1
  • 6
    Um, which word was used?
    – tchrist ♦
    Commented Aug 18, 2014 at 17:55
0

01/03/2019: A Guardian article (online) notes Roman Britain, as understood from discovered Roman graffiti and worn or carried charms, had a propensity to reference widely the potent image of the male phallus. The article used the word 'desanguinating' for the action of Roman soldiers using short thrusting swords, as of poking, raping phalluses, in an act of desanguinating (disembowelling) the foe. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/feb/28/roman-britain-phalluses-hadrians-wall

Improve this answer
0

The two words have slightly different meanings: desanguination is to remove the blood from (an individual or an appendage); exsanguination is to cause death by removing blood. Someone could die from desanguination at which point they'd be exsanguinated. Also, one can desanguinate a priapism, but not exsanguinate (or at least I hope not for the poor bloke's sake).

Improve this answer
2
  • 1
    Your answer could be improved with additional supporting information. Please edit to add further details, such as citations or documentation, so that others can confirm that your answer is correct. You can find more information on how to write good answers in the help center.
    – Community Bot
    Commented Jan 22, 2022 at 18:41
  • I've quickly found overlapping dictionary definitions.
    – Edwin Ashworth
    Commented Jan 22, 2022 at 19:00

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .