Wordorigins.org

Wordorigins.org is devoted to the origins of words and phrases, or as a linguist would put it, to etymology. Etymology is the study of word origins. (It is not the study of insects; that is entomology.) Where words come from is a fascinating subject, full of folklore and historical lessons. Often, popular tales of a word’s origin arise. Sometimes these are true; more often they are not. While it can be disappointing when a neat little tale turns out to be untrue, almost invariably the true origin is just as interesting.

Wilton, D. (2004). Word myths: debunking linguistic urban legends. New York, Oxford University Press.

The paperback version of Word Myths is available.

Or click here if you want the hardcover version.

Did you ever think that Ring Around The Rosie makes reference to the Black Death of the Middle Ages? Or that the whole nine yards refers to the length of a machinegun ammo belt? Or perhaps that Eskimos have 500 words for snow? If so, then you have been taken in by a linguistic urban legend. Like classic urban legends, these linguistic legends are popular and pervasive. Instead of propagating cautionary tales about the dangers of modern life, linguistic urban folklore propagates stories and “facts” about language.

Lera Boroditsky of Stanford University discusses the question of ”how does our language shape the way we think?”

Mark Peters over at Good has a blog post on the current ubiquity of fail. (He doesn’t like it, but respects its success.)

This month the Oxford English Dictionary released its quarterly update, covering the range from rean to recyclist. This material was originally published in 1904 under the editorship of William Craigie.

Along with the revised entries, several new words have been added. These include:

• bailout, n.2, the rescue of a financial institution
• car-booter, n., a British term for someone who attends car-boot (car trunk to us Yanks) sales
• rechallenge, n. and v., a return challenge, to challenge someone who has challenged you
• turducken, n., a culinary delight consisting of a boned chicken stuffed inside a boned duck, which in turn is stuffed inside a turkey.