The Rice University Neologisms Database

a Rice student who is majoring in Architecture. The term ‘archi’ describes Rice students majoring in Architecture. Similar to ‘musi’, ‘archi’ also describes students pursuing a certain major. ‘Archi’ did not derive from the course catalog abbreviation. It is a clipping of the term architect or architecture. It is reasonable to assume it was clipped from architect because it is describing a person. It can be predicted that this word has become popular because it is easier to say than, “I am majoring in Architecture,” or “I am an student at the school of Architecture.” However, this word is also confined to the Rice community. The people outside the hedges do not understand these clippings as easily as the people directly affiliated with Rice. A Rice architecture student would not introduce himself as an ‘archi’ at a formal dinner. It is a much more casual word that is used among students rather than with adults or in a formal setting. The time and place will play in role in deciding to use ‘archi’ rather than ‘architecture major’ or any other relevant and more common words. The term architect can be traced back to Greek architektōn. The word contains two morphemes: archi- and –tektōn. The morpheme archi- is defined as chief. However, when students refer to themselves as an ‘archi,’ they aren’t calling themselves a chief. It seems incorrect to separate the morphemes and expect one to take on the meaning of both; however, Rice students have done it!