liminality

American  

[lim-uh-nal-i-tee] / ˌlɪm əˈnæl ɪ ti /

noun

Anthropology.

1. the transitional period or phase of a rite of passage, during which the participant lacks social status or rank, remains anonymous, shows obedience and humility, and follows prescribed forms of conduct, dress, etc.

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Usage

What does liminality mean? Liminality is a state of transition between one stage and the next, especially between major stages in one’s life or during a rite of passage.The concept of liminality was first developed and is used most often in the science of anthropology (the study of human origins, behavior, and culture). In a general sense, liminality is an in-between period, typically marked by uncertainty.Example: After graduation, many students find themselves in a state of liminality before they’re fully established in the workplace.

Etymology

Origin of liminality

< Latin līmin- (stem of līmen ) threshold + -al ¹ + -ity

Example Sentences

Guidebooks, she fears, have “ruined the greater part of the planet,” partly because they contaminate this in-betweenness, this liminality, with the lead anchor of consumerist description.

From The New Yorker

Reincarnation is perhaps the ultimate form of liminality,so it shouldn’t be surprising that the members of the Propeller Group are fascinated by it.

From New York Times

Obasi Shaw penned “Liminal Minds” at Cambridge this semester as a reflection on “black liminality” and the “state between slavery and freedom.”

From Washington Times

They have spent their formative years in a “labyrinth of liminality,” he said.

From New York Times

That cultural liminality allows Ansari to be one of “us,” whoever that entails, and for him to operate not just as a mirror but as a screen for projected idealizations.

From The New Yorker