Posts Tagged ‘etymology’
A fascinating glimpse into sea-sourced vocabulary from author Grace Tierney
From baggywinkle and gollywobbler to tempest and flotsam, the sea in all her moods has given a boatload of words to the English language throughout history. Grace Tierney’s fascinating Words the Sea Gave Us explores their origins along with a cargo of old sea dog yarns. Cast your line for the salty history of skyscraper,…
Read MoreQuarantine – a word comes full circle
I’ve always loved history and etymology, so not surprising I was attracted to both elements with the word quarantine. The English word quarantine comes from the Italian term ‘quarantena’. The term derives from the number ‘quaranta’ – meaning forty. During the period of the Bubonic Plague, or Black Death, that spread around Europe from the…
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