Camping is an activity that means something different to everyone, but what do the various authorities on the definitions of words have to say about it? Let’s find out, shall we?
Wikipedia
describes camping as an outdoor recreational activity. The participants leave urban areas, their home region, or civilisation and enjoy nature while spending one or several nights outdoors, usually at a campsite. Camping may involve the use of a tent, caravan, motorhome, a primitive structure, or no shelter at all.
Urban Dictionary
The Act of staying in one spot in a map in a first person shooter video game to gain a tactical advantage over an enemy or group of enemies. The person committing the act of camping is the “camper” and the spot on the map it is happening in is “camped”.
Camping uses many different forms – a tent, camper trailer, or caravan. Photo: Andrew Kennedy
Collins Dictionary
This dictionary calls it the recreational activity of living temporarily in or as if in a tent.
Merriam–Webster
A camp is a place usually away from urban areas where tents or simple buildings (as cabins) are erected for shelter or for temporary residence (as for labourers, prisoners, or vacationers).
So let’s break this down: apparently, we as campers, leave civilisation to partake in a recreational activity at a spot on a map to be camped in a campsite. We stay or live temporarily outdoors in a primitive structure or simple building erected for shelter.
What does the definition of camping mean to you? Photo: Coleman Australia
Or my definition
Camping is designed for people to enjoy the great outdoors in a variety of modern shelters, whether it be in a swag, lightweight hiker tent, multi room ‘chalet’ tent, camper trailer, slide-on or roof top tent. Caravaners often consider themselves campers as well. But I think to qualify, you can’t have a shower or toilet built in.
Today’s camper can avail themselves of the latest gadgets, cookers, fridges, dried foods and accessories and clothing to make their ‘recreational’ activity so much fun.
Camping – you don’t have to fully escape civilisation when you can take some with you!
How do you define camping? What does it mean to you?