We explain what nostalgia is, the origin of the term, and various ways of understanding it. We also discuss its relationship with melancholy. Please read other MTV articles for more information. If you share it, it will be of little help to us.
What is nostalgia?
Nostalgia is a feeling of longing for past situations, generally those we find pleasant, important, or unforgettable. It can be characterized as sadness over the loss of past things and, at the same time, the joy associated with remembering those things.
The Dictionary of the Spanish Language defines nostalgia as the “sorrow of being absent from one’s homeland, relatives, or friends,” or the “melancholic sadness caused by the memory of lost happiness.” Thus, it is not easy to determine whether it is a pleasant or painful feeling.
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The word nostalgia is a learned word, formed from the Greek words nóstos (“return”) and álgos (“pain”). It was introduced by the young Swiss physician Johannes Hofer (1669-1752) in his 1688 thesis at the University of Basel.
Hofer described an illness, similar to melancholy, that affected Swiss mercenaries who had left their homeland to fight for a foreign power. Some of the symptoms of this illness included fever, indigestion, fainting, languor, and an irregular pulse. He called this condition nostalgia or malaise (heimweh, in German).
In the following centuries, nostalgia went from being judged as a particular illness to being treated as a symptom or stage of a broader pathological condition, common in people with suicidal thoughts. However, until the beginning of the 20th century, nostalgia, described as an intense and potentially dangerous desire to return to one’s homeland, was diagnosed in many soldiers.
Nowadays, nostalgia is considered a natural emotion, one that many people experience frequently and that can even be positive. Psychology has studied its effects on the psyche and has discovered that it has important functions. For example:
- It improves self-esteem and mood.
- It helps one cope with the difficulties of the present and the uncertainties of the future.
- It gives meaning to one’s existence.
Along with its positive aspects, nostalgia also has less beneficial traits, insofar as it is a form of self-deception in which the past is idealized and distorted, erasing the bad or boring parts from memory.
In this sense, the excessive cultivation of nostalgia can lead to an unrealistic vision of a past that never existed and cannot exist, but which is tirelessly sought. Thus, nostalgia becomes an obstacle to enjoying the present.
Although the term is relatively recent, the feeling of nostalgia has a long and ancient history, as evidenced by Homer’s Odyssey (8th century BC), whose central theme is the nóstos (return) of Odysseus to his native Ithaca after fighting in the Trojan War.
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Nostalgia and Melancholy
“Nostalgia” and “melancholy” are often used synonymously, as both tend to be associated with a sad, contemplative, or reflective feeling.
However, there are important differences between the two:
- Melancholy is an apathetic state (lack of desire) of sadness and disinterest, which often leads the subject to lose themselves in memory or fantasy. Nostalgia, on the other hand, is a feeling of longing for the past, associated with pleasant sensations.
- Melancholy provokes in those who experience it a feeling of dissatisfaction with their own life, which is not the case with nostalgia.
- Melancholy occurs over a long period of time, going beyond a specific time or place in the past. In contrast, nostalgia is often connected to a specific memory.
- Melancholy is associated with unpleasant experiences and emotions, and sad thoughts. Nostalgia can be linked to both pleasant feelings (for the past) and unpleasant feelings (for the loss of that past).
From ancient times until a few centuries ago, melancholy was considered one of the four temperaments, corresponding to the four humors that regulated the functioning of the human body (phlegm, blood, yellow bile, and black bile). Excess black bile was responsible for the melancholic temperament. Melancholic people were characterized by a depressed mood, complaints, and sometimes hallucinations and delusions.
Melancholy was often associated with genius and creativity, and also with evil and demonic possession. Romanticism classified it as a disease of poets. In the 20th century, melancholy became synonymous with depression.
Today, the term melancholy, in addition to its usual meaning, is used in psychiatry to refer to certain characteristics present in depression, such as a depressed mood; lack of interest and pleasure in normally enjoyable activities; lack of emotional response; and loss of appetite.
We are all prone to nostalgia in one way or another, but not all of us suffer from melancholy. Even fewer suffer from melancholic depression, which can become a real health problem, rather than a mood that encourages creativity.
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Words from other languages related to nostalgia
The word nostalgia is present in many languages: nostalgia in Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and English; nostalgie in German and French; nostal’giya in Russian; nostalgi in Swedish and Danish. There are also words in various languages that designate concepts related to nostalgia.
Saudade
This is a word of Portuguese origin that designates love and longing for someone or something that has been lost and may never be recovered.
Morrina
This is a Spanish term of Galician origin, referring to a feeling of grief or sadness experienced when far from one’s homeland or from loved ones and places.
Mono no aware
This is a Japanese expression that literally means “the pathos of things.” It refers to an awareness of the brevity of things, along with an appreciation for their ephemeral beauty and a gentle sadness at their passing, and a deeper sorrow at the realization that all things must pass.
Sehnsucht
This is a German word meaning “to yearn” or “to desire.” It indicates the constant and ardent desire for an ideal that seems more real than reality itself. Unlike nostalgia, which implies a longing for the past, sehnsucht refers to the search for something undefined in the future.
Homesickness
This is an English word used to refer to the anguish caused by being away from home. It is often translated as homesickness or nostalgia.
Hiraeth
- This is a Welsh word that expresses longing, tinged with grief and sadness, for the past and for something that no longer exists.
- Mal du pays. It’s a French expression used to describe the malaise felt by those who have left their country or region. It is equivalent to the German Heimweth (‘homesickness’, ‘nostalgia’), the English homesickness, and the Spanish morriña.
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References
All the information we offer is supported by authoritative and up-to-date bibliographic sources, ensuring reliable content in line with our editorial principles.
- Nostalgia, in the Dictionary of the Spanish Language of the Royal Spanish Academy.
- Why Do We Feel Nostalgia?, in Muy Interesante.
- The Meaning of Nostalgia, in Psychology Today.
- Nostalgia for the Country, in swissinfo.ch.
- What is Nostalgia, concept, origin – concepto.de
