Lunatic
A
lunatic (colloquially, "
loony") is a pejorative term for a person who is
mentally ill, dangerous, foolish or unpredictable. The word gains its stem from the
latin for
moon ('luna') which denotes the traditional link made in
folklore between
madness and the phases of the moon. This probably refers to the symptoms of cyclic mood disorders such as
Bipolar disorder or
cyclothymia, the symptoms of which may also go through phases. However, there is little evidence for any causal link between phases of the moon and the progression of mood disorder symptoms.
See also: Official Monster Raving Loony Party, Bedlam