Monthly Gleanings: February 2007
Anatoly Liberman’s monthly gleaings.
Monthly Gleanings: January 2007
Anatoly’s monthly gleanings.
Monthly Gleanings: December 2006
Anatoly Liberman’s Monthly Gleanings.
Monthly Gleanings: November, 2006
Anatoly Liberman answers some questions readers have submitted.
September gleanings: macabre, gully & gulch
Some time ago I received a question about the word macabre. This adjective first appeared in Old French, in the phrase dancemacabre. The story begins with the fresco of the Dance Macabre, painted in 1424 in the Church of Innocents at Paris. The English poet and monk John Lydgate knew the fresco.
Monthly gleanings
On August 23, I appeared on the “Midmorning” show on Minnesota Public Radio. Many of you called in with questions, to some of which I could give immediate answers. But, the origin of several words I did not remember offhand and I promised to look them up in my database. Here are my responses.
(Bi)Monthly Gleanings
By Anatoly Liberman In June and July there were several queries about word origins and a general question about the availability of linguistic information, which shows that no heat wave can dry up people’s interest in etymology. Wayzgoose. This word appeared late and is odd because it denotes an entertainment given specifically to printers at […]
Monthly Gleanings,
May 2006
by Anatoly Liberman Alex, a fifth-grader and so far the youngest reader of this blog, wants to know how to start investigating one’s family name. This question interests many people who study their genealogy. (Pay attention to the spelling: in American English, genealogy rhymes with geology, biology, and philology, but its root is Latin genea […]
Monthly Gleanings
by Anatoly Liberman Martin Chuzzlewit spent some time in America and, following the lead of his creator, Charles Dickens, formed a most unfavorable impression of the country. Soon after his arrival, he met the editors of the Watertoast Gazette, who were sure that Queen Victoria “[would] shake in her royal shoes” when she opened the […]
Monthly Etymology Gleanings for March 2006
This blog column has existed for a month. It was launched with the idea that it would attract questions and comments. If this happens, at the end of each month the rubric “Monthly Gleanings” will appear. Although in March I have not been swamped with the mail, there is enough for a full post. Also, one question was asked privately, but in connection with the blog, so that I think I may answer it here.
A four-forked etymology: curfew
It appears that the etymology of curfew has been solved. In any case, all modern dictionaries say the same. The English word surfaced in texts in the early fourteenth century, but a signal to people to extinguish their fires is much older.
Some hopelessly obscure words: the case of cowan
Some words don’t interest anyone. They languish in their obscurity, and even lexicographers miss or ignore them. Yet they too deserve to get their day in court. One such word is “cowan.”
A few things at a glance
The Oxford Etymologist responds to readers comments on his most recent blog post topics.
Gr-words as mushrooms
Some words propagate like mushrooms: no roots but a sizable crowd of upstarts calling themselves relatives. Gr-words are the pet subject of all works on sound imitation and sound symbolism.
In the footsteps of our greatest favorite: vampire
We love books and movies about vampires, don’t we? Everybody knows who Dracula was, and many people believe that we owe the entire myth to him. This, however, is not true. In this blog post, the Oxford Etymologist deals with the history of the word “vampire.”
The human aspect of etymology
Why do so many words beginning with sn- evoke unpleasant associations? The Oxford Etymologist answers a reader’s question.