What does Zirafah mean?

Hello, fellow curious human! I am delighted to see that I am not the only person interested in the names behind things.

I've always loved giraffes. Growing up in South Africa, they were part of the landscape of my childhood holidays to national parks, and for many people outside Africa, giraffes and South Africa are already linked in the imagination. So when it came to naming this practice, I chose a name that combines where I come from with an animal that fascinates me.

Hence, "Zirafah", an etymological variant of "giraffe," rooted in Arabic and Swahili.

The name is also symbolic in a way that felt right for this work. Giraffes communicate in ways researchers are still working to understand. They usse infrasound and body language, and the signals that they send travel further than they appear to. They also have an ability to see further than most, thanks to their gorgeous necks!

So what does this have to do with technical communication in business?

Researchers and technical experts sometimes also communicate in ways that fellow-humans struggle to understand (I say this firmly "tongue in cheek!) Their work allows them to see further than most - no long necks required - and with support, training, and practice, they can develop skills to help them communicate what they know, in the way that other people need to hear it, intentionally.

For work that's about bridging what researchers know with what businesses need to act on, Zirafah felt like the right name to build a practice around - for all these reasons.