De Javu

Also called paramnesia, The term was coined by a French psychic researcher, Émile Boirac (1851–1917) in his book L'Avenir des sciences psychiques (The Future of Psychic Sciences), which expanded upon an essay he wrote while an undergraduate. The experience of déjà vu is usually accompanied by a compelling sense of familiarity, and also a sense of "eeriness", "strangeness", or "weirdness". The "previous" experience is most frequently attributed to a dream, although in some cases there is a firm sense that the experience "genuinely happened" in the past.

The experience of déjà vu seems to be quite common among adults and children alike; in formal studies 70% of people report having experienced it at least once. References to the experience of déjà vu are also found in literature of the past, indicating it is not a new phenomenon. It has been extremely difficult to evoke the déjà vu experience in laboratory settings, therefore making it a subject of few empirical studies. Recently, researchers have found ways to recreate this sensation using hypnosis.

In the English speaking world the "vu" in "déjà vu" is often mispronounced as "vous" ("voo") instead of "vu" ("vu"). Persons who pronounce "déja vu" as "vous" actually say "already you" instead of "already seen" if this would be translated. This pronunciation mistake can be heard in many English language films and tv series, as in, for example, the film Groundhog Day and the 16th episode of Monty Python's Flying Circus.