Why have a neighborhood block party when you could level up your vocabulary and call it a vicinage festivity? The Latin “vicinus” meant “neighbor,” which turned into “veisinage” in Anglo-French, meaning “neighboring.” It came into Middle English as “vesinage,” but the modern English spelling returns to the word’s Latin roots with “vicinage.” It refers to a neighboring or surrounding district — you could also say “vicinity,” and it would mean the same thing.