Amok

The saying "Running amok" is a Balinese word describing a battle technique of suddenly going insanely wild against one's enemies in suicidal and bloody hand-to-hand combat.

Talk about the random facts that one learns by just reading a book. This little tid-bit was in the book Eat, Pray, Love. You should read this book because even if you can't relate to the character's personal or physical journey it is a true gem of whit and so well written that everyone will enjoy.

I had never wondered where this phrase comes from even though I use it regularly to describe crazy children or other people or things that are out of control. I wasn't using exactly correctly, but not far off. Tons of words we use are French, German, Spanish and even Latin. I would have never guessed a Balinese origin. Balinese is one of the hardest languages to learn, so if there's only one word you learn, your lucky because you already know this one.