Lily's Language Lab: 03/15/2026

 Compiled by Lily Randall, Blog Staff Writer & Wortschatzmeisterin

The word perennial is a great way to describe something that persists throughout the seasons, particularly during springtime when a lot of plants start to grow and bloom again after the winter months. It comes from the Latin word perennis, meaning lasting through the year. I hope you find this word as "groovacious" as I do!

In this digital image created by the Editor, Athena, the Classical Greek goddess of wisdom, is seated on an ornate chair in a grove of olive trees near the Acropolis in ancient Athens (which was named after her). The wise old owl is perched on Athena's chair, and Athena herself is holding a book entitled "The Perennial Philosophy," of which she is the author. As a wisdom goddess, Athena is comparable to other wisdom goddesses from the ancient world, such as Minerva (Roman), Neith (Egyptian), Sophia (Judeo-Christian-Gnostic), Saraswati (Hindu), Prajnaparamita (Buddhist), and Benzaiten (Japanese Buddhist/Shinto). The "perennial philosophy" highlights the idea that all the great spiritual traditions of the world share a common core of basic teachings that they inherited from the same Source, probably in prehistoric times.