Semi-quincentennial!

By Paul Lintern, Editor, the Joyful Noiseletter

I had no idea what we would call it.

Quarter Mil sounds like a price tag.

Two-hundred-fiftieth is ponderous and such a mouthful.

I figured there were options, based on our love of Latin for special events, such as the Super Bowls being numbers Romanly, and CCLX has a nice look to it, even though pronouncing it will make most people stumble.

But then, today, in the Rose Parade, the announcer named it:
Semi-quincentennial!

I like it.  Apparently it means we are halfway to our Quincentennial, which I assume is what a 500th anniversary is called (although I don’t expect to be around for that one). 

I don’t remember in 1992 whether we called it the Quincentennial of Columbus discovering people living in the West Indies, or 2017 being the Quincentennial of the Protestant Reformation, or maybe it’s just easier to say 500th than it is to say 250th. (It is!). 

I do love that we have such an impressive title for this anniversary year of the United States. 

Semi is a good term — a semi-annual sale is a half-year sale, and a semi-tractor-trailer is half a truck (I guess), semi cuts things in two.

So why didn’t we celebrate the semi-quadcentennial in 1976? Or the semi-tricentennial whenever we mark 150 years.  Semi-bicentennial for 100th?  Never mind, I’m just playing.  We don’t have enough math whizzes around to understand the terminology anyway. 

I just had my semi-centennial high school class reunion 18 months ago (semi-triannually ago, or is it sesqui-annually ago?).  Does sesqui mean one and a half or halfway to the next?  And why isn’t this the sesqui-bicentennial.  That would be fine, too.

But, I will go with semi-quincentennial because the announcers at the parade sounded very confident saying it and they get paid to talk confidently. 

It inspired me to write a pep song for this year, to a tune that was made famous in Mary Poppins, sung by Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, who just celebrated his semi-bicentennial birthday, which means he has been alive for 40 percent of the country’s existence, everything since Calvin Coolidge.

It goes like this:

Semi-quincentennial is what we’re celebrating.

A special anniversary, of that there’s no debating.

A quarter of millenium of stories we’re relating.

Semi-quincentennial is what we’re celebrating.

Because we were upset with being taxed without fair voice,

We declared our independence, claiming we had no choice,

Many years of fighting and we finally won the day,

Two hundred and fifty years now we have this to say:

Semi-quincentennial is what we’re celebrating.

A special anniversary, of that there’s no debating.

A quarter of millenium of stories we’re relating.

Semi-quincentennial is what we’re celebrating.

Lots of wars and presidents and adding 50 states,

Every student learns them all along with lots of dates.

Innovation, industry and economic growth,

Defend the constitution should be everybody’s oath,

Semi-quincentennial is what we’re celebrating.

A special anniversary, of that there’s no debating.

A quarter of millenium of stories we’re relating.

Semi-quincentennial is what we’re celebrating.

So we have the chance to pay attention to our his’try,

Principles that make us great should never be a mystery.

Freedoms that are spelled out made available for all,

Listen to the founders, maybe you will hear them call.

Semi-quincentennial is what we’re celebrating.

A special anniversary, of that there’s no debating.

A quarter of millenium of stories we’re relating.

Semi-quincentennial is what we’re celebrating

©2026 the Joyful Noiseletter. All Rights Reserved