In order to begin to know the meaning of the term in the past that now concerns us, we have to state that it is a word whose etymological origin is in Latin. Specifically, it is the result of the sum of these two components:
-The prefix "ante-", which can be translated as "before".
-The noun "annum", which is synonymous with "year".
The concept refers to a past temporary period : that is, it is located in the past . For example: “Children don't study like they used to: they now use technology to search for information and read”, “In this small town several rituals of yesteryear are still preserved”, “The stadiums of yesteryear were smaller and had wooden structures”.
When the phrase is used "As before", it is usual to establish a comparison between past and the I presented . If a man mentions that he would like to spend the whole summer on the beach "As before", is implying that, at present, he no longer enjoys the entire summer season in a beach environment. Likewise, who says he would like to have family Sunday lunch "As before", reveals that this shared family rite is no longer carried out.
The phrase can also be used "of yore" to name what is typical of years, decades or centuries before . It could be said, in this sense, that sending a fax is an action "of yore": Today it is much more common to establish written communications through a email . Traveling on horseback, writing on a typewriter, sending letters by mail and listening to music on cassettes are also customs or activities "of yore", which were left in the past by the advancement of technology (and the invention of the car, the computer and the Internet that allowed them to be replaced).
There are numerous famous phrases that use the word we are now addressing. Among the most significant, some stand out like these:
- "Do not look in nests of yesteryear, birds flying" (Miguel de Cervantes, writer).
- "I think with the Romans of yesteryear that the general of today must be tomorrow, if necessary, a private soldier" (Thomas Jefferson, the Third President of the United States of America).
- “Today's pilots are athletes who sell their abilities for money. The old drivers did not risk their lives for anything, but the sport came before money ”(Enzo Ferrari, Founder of the Ferrari Team).
- “The great lords are almost the only people from whom you can learn as much as from the peasants; their conversation is adorned with everything that refers to the earth, the mansions as they once lived, the ancient uses, everything that the world of money ignores deeply ”(Marcel Proust, writer).
It should not be overlooked that we also find its use in the field of wines. Thus, there is a winery in Spain, Bodegas Carrión, which sells what are "Vinos de Antaño". They have the Rioja Denomination of Origin and present varieties such as aging, reserve or tempranillo, among others.
