In debating and analysing the aspects of risk, have you ever wondered about the origin of the term ’risk’?
I did not. However, I once wondered about the perception of bio-risks, and therefore googled this word. To my surprise, I found a bio-risk paper claiming that ‘risk’ was originally a maritime expression. Over a period of time I asked many colleagues from many countries working on maritime safety about this maritime origin of the term – with no success. Later, in an international debate on risk terminology, a professor in linguistics explained some of the background, indicating that the origin could be traced back to Homer’s works. With some help from a professor and students in Athens, we were also able to find the exact reference. From the various sources identified, it was possible to trace the development of the expression all the way from Homer to our time.
The various forms of systematic use of risk analysis and risk management strategies are normally traced back to the late fifties or early sixties. Their use spread largely driven by statutory frameworks for the regulation of safety, health and environmental risks. Risk assessment methods have been continuously refined and developed, and today various forms of risk assessment methods are crucial for societal and commercial decision-making. DNV introduced ‘Managing risk’ as the common term for all its activities in 1997.
Homer’s Rhapsody M of Odyssey
The etymology of the term ‘risk’ is interesting. At the same time, it is ancient history. The term risk may be traced back to classical Greek risk, meaning root, stone, cut from firm land, and was later used in Latin for cliff. Latin and vulgar Latin resicum, risicum, riscus: cliff, récif, Felsklippe are the origins of Italian risico, risco, rischio, Spanish riesgo and French risque.
The original term is used in Homer’s Rhapsody M of Odyssey “Sirens, Scylla, Charybdee and the bulls of Helios (Sun)”. Odysseus tried to save himself from Charybdee at the cliffs of Scylla, where his ship was destroyed by heavy seas generated by Zeus.
English borrowed the term from Spanish, German from Italian and both were backed up by the French risque of the 18th century. Dictionaries confirm that it was a metaphor for “difficulty to avoid at sea”. These lexical borrowings happened at the end of the Middle Ages, when the Renaissance took place and people dared to discover the world.
The idea of risk appears to have taken hold in the 16th and 17th centuries, and was first coined by Western explorers as they set off on their voyages to explore the world. The term ‘risk’ has most likely come into English through Spanish or Portuguese, where it was used to refer to sailing into uncharted waters. From the 16th century onwards, the term therefore attained a beneficial meaning, for example in middle-high-German Rysigo was a technical term for business, with the meaning “to dare, to undertake a business and aspire for economic success”.
Abstractions
It can be seen that the term originally had a concrete orientation towards space – cliffs, stones or land.
Later, its use became abstract and transferred to time – dare, undertake – as used also for financial and insurance instruments – meaning estimation of the probable consequences of investment decisions. It subsequently came to refer to a wide range of other situations involving uncertainty, as we today talk about the new risk reality, where any deviation from the optimum solution or process is described as a risk or expected loss.
However, this does not prevent the term being used in its modern form regarding current risk issues. As a matter of fact, DNV is for the time being involved in a risk study of Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems, where one of the risks involved relates to – now electronically – uncharted waters.
Date: 2005-12-20