Episode 62: Why the word “Resilient?”

Written By Milo Curtis

SUMMARY
Where do we get the word “resilient,” and why does it matter that we ask this sort of question? In this episode, Milo and Olivia explore the history of the word "resilient" and consider its cultural usage over the past 200 years.

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INTRODUCTION
Where do we get the word “resilient,” and why does it matter that we ask this sort of question? In this episode, Milo and Olivia explore the history of the word "resilient" and consider its cultural usage over the past 200 years.

Brief History of the word Resilience

The word "resilience" originates from Latin, with its earlier root, "resilire," primarily used in Scottish contexts. The verb "resile" means to draw back, withdraw, or distance oneself from an undertaking, declaration, course of action, opinion. Although not commonly used, "resile" describes the behavior of a person or object rebounding. In the mid-1800s, the term began to describe the engineering properties of building materials. Robert Mallet played a crucial role in popularizing the term through a series of published works that examined the application of steel in shipbuilding. “Mallet developed a measure - the modulus of resilience - as a means of assessing the ability of materials to withstand severe conditions.”[1] By the 1850s, resilience was commonly defined as “the quality or fact of being able to recover quickly or easily from, or resist being affected by, a misfortune, shock, illness, etc.; robustness; adaptability.”[2]  Mallet's groundbreaking research laid the foundation for evaluating the resilient strength of building materials utilized across the UK.

It was in the 1970s that the word migrated from the civil engineering offices and into the psychotherapy sessions.[3] It was utilized to describe how individuals coped with traumatic events. As resilience became a focal point in psychology, it gained significant traction in public discourse. Between 1970 and 2010, the term's usage doubled, and from 2017 to 2023, it nearly tripled.[4]

Apple Podcasts lists 148 podcast shows featuring the word "resilient" or “resilience” in their titles.[5]Amazon currently lists over 30,000 books on the topic of resilience.[6]


SCRIPTURAL EXAMPLES THAT CAPTURE THE SPIRIT OF BEING RESILIENT

  • Prov. 24:16 - for the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.

  • Heb 10:36 - For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.

  • 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 - Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.

Defining Resilience: Surviving personal adversity AND bouncing back from setbacks.

Choosing to be resilient increases your capacity to…

  • Gain clarity on your core convictions

  • Intimately understand the non-negotiable that strengthen your integrity

  • Use pain as catalyst to grow and learn

  • Wisely hold the tension between living with strength and flexibility

[1] McAslan, Alastair. "The concept of resilience: Understanding its origins, meaning and utility." Adelaide: Torrens Resilience Institute 1 (2010), 2.

[2] Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “resilience (n.),” September 2023 (Link)

[3] McAslan, "The Concept of Resilience," 4.

[4] Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “resilience (n.).”

[5] Resilient Podcasts, Apple Podcast, accessed November 4, 2024,

[6] "Resilience," Amazon, accessed November 4, 2024, (Link)

CONTACT US at hello@thisresilientsoul.com. We are always looking for ways to deepen the quality and expand the impact of this podcast. So if you have some ideas on how we can do that we welcome your input.

Theme Music: Love Poem by Soyb

Milo Curtis
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Episode 61: Material Matters