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By Steve Roark

Columnist

When it comes to nature appreciation, we all have our own fondness for different things: clouds, mountain views, waterfalls, you name it. And humans being humans, we love to classify things, to put things in neat categories, especially in the sciences. There is even a scientific classification for what animals and humans prefer or love. They do this by using the suffix “phile”, which means to love or have a fondness for. It’s from the Greek word “philos”, which means love.  For example, if you are really fond of flowers like I am, you are an Anthophile, from the Greek word anthos, which means flower.  For fun I looked up with a list of nature related phenomena that are beloved and have been classified

If you love beautiful sunsets, you are an Opacarophile, and sunrise lovers are Heliophiles. On the other end of the spectrum, a Nyctophile has a fondness for nighttime, and while enjoying the dark, if you also love gazing at the stars, you are an Astrophile. Like seeing the moon? You’re a Selenophile.

If you have a preference for certain weather conditions, try these on for size. Hot summer weather lovers are Thermophiles.  I, on the other hand, like snow and cold weather, making me a Chionophile. Lovers of thunderstorms are Ceraunophiles, while rainy day lovers are Pluviophiles. Those that take time to enjoy cloud formations are Nephophiles.

I am most definitely a Dendrophile, a lover of trees. And I need to have business cards made that announce me as a Nemophile, a lover of the entire forest realm, a haunter of the woods. People of the Appalachians are Orophiles, lovers of mountains. Those who seek out our rugged hills for solitude and being alone are Autophiles. Do you enjoy waterfalls and other watery things? You’re an Aquaphile.  All you lake lovers out there are Limnophiles, and while we don’t have oceans nearby, droves of us make an annual pilgrimage to the beach every year and are bonafide Thalassophiles, lovers of the sea.  

If the domestic life is more your preference, you are still classified. Dog lovers are Cynophiles, cat lovers Ailurophiles. Bibliphiles love books, Retrophiles collect artifacts from the past  (antiques). And finally, those who really love to just chill out in a comfy bed or chair, you my friends, are Clinophiles.