Today, one of my English students asked me what does “CV” stand for. Of course, we were having a lit chat about career choices and she was telling me about her future plans. Then she mentioned that she needed to submit her “CV” to a tourism company. “But sir, what does CV stand for.”
It didn’t take me long to answer. This was something I had thought about, and I think this is a question that almost every student or modern person asks themselves at some point or the other.
The acronym “CV” stands for “Curriculum Vitae.” But what does curriculum vitae mean? Those are Latin words, and it translate most literally to “the run of your life.”
The word “curriculum” comes from a Latin word meaning “run.” And the word “vitae” comes from a Latin word meaning “life.” So curriculum vitae essentially means “the run of your life.”
Basically, a curriculum vitae a list of your qualifications and experience, especially as it relates to a particular career of field of study. It also lists bio-data such as your date of birth and additional information such as your address and telephone number.
A good curriculum vitae will convey how your life ran in terms of what skills, knowledge and experiences you have gained. A good curriculum vitae will convince employers that you have what the job takes, and a bad one will do the opposite.
Remember, Latin is an officially dead language. It is not spoken by any country. But the Romance languages (Roman based) – French, Portuguese, Spanish and Italian are very much alive.
Let’s examine these two words in the Roman Based Languages.
- Run
French – Courir
Portuguese – corre
Spanish – correr
Italian – correre
2. LIfe
French – la vie
Portuguese – vida
Spanish – vida
Italian – vita
