Deciphering ‘Graaiflatie’: Word of the Year 2023 in Flanders

2023-12-20 11:30:10

“Graaiflatie” was chosen as the word of the year 2023 in Flanders, following an election organized by the Van Dale dictionary in collaboration with the VRT. Bilingual journalist Joyce Azar deciphers this news on La Première.

According to Van Dale, “graaiflatie” refers to companies which, under the pretext of rising inflation, continue to increase their prices. It is therefore inflation fueled by companies which pass on to their customers the rising costs of fuel, means of production and labor in order to maintain or increase their profits. Despite the election of this word, “graaiflatie” is a phenomenon which affects Belgium very little, according to the conclusions of the National Bank.

The term appeared last spring in Dutch newspapers. In the Netherlands, “Graaiflatie” also established itself as the word of the year in 2023. “Graaiflatie” was then taken up by Flemish daily newspapers, which is not surprising given the economic situation .

It is inspired by the Anglo-Saxon expression “greedflation”, which also combines terms referring to greed and inflation. Along the same lines, “graaiflatie” is a combination of the term “graaien” (to seize) and the word “inflatie” (inflation).

In Flanders, this term received 36.7% of the votes. It is followed by “nepobaby”, which refers to a person who is assumed to have obtained employment, often in the entertainment world, through famous parents, who work in the same industry.

In third place, we find “pyjamatoerist”, which refers to people who stay at their destination, unlike “selfietoerist”, who simply quickly take a photo before leaving the place.

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We can also cite “hittefit” (being prepared to endure a heat wave), “Tiktokjustitie” (taking justice into your own hands on TikTok) or even “vreugdebier” (the beer that football fans throw in the air when their team scores a goal).

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