like elephants, giraffes, crocodiles who named them and why have they stuck ????
just makes me wonder :lol
Warming the Bed
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why are thngs named wot they are???
Sex God
I have a wood grater 
:lol:
because a rasp or a plane is a stupid name for summit that grates wood innit :twisted:
:lol: because a rasp or a plane is a stupid name for summit that grates wood innit :twisted:
just for some useless trivia Desert Dave
alligator This word comes from the Spanish words ‘el lagarto’, which mean ‘the lizard’.
.
caterpillar This word comes from the Latin words ‘catta pilosa’, which mean ‘a hairy cat’.
chimpanzee This word has come into English from an African language.
cobra This word comes from the Portuguese words ‘cobra de capello’, which mean ‘a snake with a hood’.
cobweb ‘Coppe’ was an Old English word for a spider, so a ‘cobweb’ is a ‘spider's web’.
crocodile This word comes from the Greek word ‘krokodilos’, which means ‘worm of the stones’.
cuckoo The cuckoo gets its name from the call that it gives, which sounds like ‘cuck-oo’.
dinosaur This word comes from the Greek words ‘deinos sauros’, which mean ‘terrible lizard’.
dragon This word comes from the Greek word ‘drakon’, which means ‘a snake’.
elephant This word comes from the Greek word ‘elephas‘, which means ‘ivory’
(which elephants' tusks are made of)
.
herbivore This word comes from the Latin word ‘herba’,
meaning ‘grass’.
hippopotamus This word comes from the Greek words ‘hippo ho potamius’, which mean ‘horse of the river’.
insect This word comes from the Latin word ‘insectum’, meaning ‘cut up’, because an insect's body is divided into several different parts.
koala This word has come into English from an Australian Aboriginal language.
mosquito This word comes from a Spanish word which means ‘a little fly’.
reptile This word comes from the Latin word ‘reptilis’, which means ‘crawling’.
rhinoceros This word comes from the Greek words ‘rhinos keras’, which mean ‘nose horn’.
spider This word comes from the Old English word ‘spithra’, which means ‘a spinner’.
turtle This word comes from the French word ‘tortue’,
which means ‘a tortoise’.
anorak This word has come into English from an Eskimo language.
cardigan The cardigan is named after James Thomas Brudenel,the Earl of Cardigan, who first made cardigans popular.
jeans Jeans get their name from the city of Genoa in Italy, where the cloth used for making jeans was once made.
jodhpurs Jodhpurs are named after the city of Jodhpur in India,where trousers like these are worn.
leotard This word comes from the name of the French man,Jules Leotard, who invented it.
pyjamas This word comes from the Urdu word ‘paejama’,
which means ‘trousers’.
sandal This word comes from the Greek word ‘sandalon’,
which means ‘a wooden shoe’.
sari This word has come into English from Hindi.
turban This word has come into English from a Persian word.
vest This word comes from the Latin word ‘vestis’,
which means ‘a piece of clothing’.
wellington Wellington boots were named after the Duke of Wellington, who wore long leather boots.
hope that helps
alligator This word comes from the Spanish words ‘el lagarto’, which mean ‘the lizard’.
.
caterpillar This word comes from the Latin words ‘catta pilosa’, which mean ‘a hairy cat’.
chimpanzee This word has come into English from an African language.
cobra This word comes from the Portuguese words ‘cobra de capello’, which mean ‘a snake with a hood’.
cobweb ‘Coppe’ was an Old English word for a spider, so a ‘cobweb’ is a ‘spider's web’.
crocodile This word comes from the Greek word ‘krokodilos’, which means ‘worm of the stones’.
cuckoo The cuckoo gets its name from the call that it gives, which sounds like ‘cuck-oo’.
dinosaur This word comes from the Greek words ‘deinos sauros’, which mean ‘terrible lizard’.
dragon This word comes from the Greek word ‘drakon’, which means ‘a snake’.
elephant This word comes from the Greek word ‘elephas‘, which means ‘ivory’
(which elephants' tusks are made of)
.
herbivore This word comes from the Latin word ‘herba’,
meaning ‘grass’.
hippopotamus This word comes from the Greek words ‘hippo ho potamius’, which mean ‘horse of the river’.
insect This word comes from the Latin word ‘insectum’, meaning ‘cut up’, because an insect's body is divided into several different parts.
koala This word has come into English from an Australian Aboriginal language.
mosquito This word comes from a Spanish word which means ‘a little fly’.
reptile This word comes from the Latin word ‘reptilis’, which means ‘crawling’.
rhinoceros This word comes from the Greek words ‘rhinos keras’, which mean ‘nose horn’.
spider This word comes from the Old English word ‘spithra’, which means ‘a spinner’.
turtle This word comes from the French word ‘tortue’,
which means ‘a tortoise’.
anorak This word has come into English from an Eskimo language.
cardigan The cardigan is named after James Thomas Brudenel,the Earl of Cardigan, who first made cardigans popular.
jeans Jeans get their name from the city of Genoa in Italy, where the cloth used for making jeans was once made.
jodhpurs Jodhpurs are named after the city of Jodhpur in India,where trousers like these are worn.
leotard This word comes from the name of the French man,Jules Leotard, who invented it.
pyjamas This word comes from the Urdu word ‘paejama’,
which means ‘trousers’.
sandal This word comes from the Greek word ‘sandalon’,
which means ‘a wooden shoe’.
sari This word has come into English from Hindi.
turban This word has come into English from a Persian word.
vest This word comes from the Latin word ‘vestis’,
which means ‘a piece of clothing’.
wellington Wellington boots were named after the Duke of Wellington, who wore long leather boots.
hope that helps
and it's a lot less bovver with a hoover :giggle:
Sex God
Quote by Bonedigger
.
caterpillar This word comes from the Latin words ‘catta pilosa’, which mean ‘a hairy cat’.
Them freaking Greeks. I mean how big were the caterpillars they had f*ck me! :shock:
Sex God
At the risk of being labelled a smart arse...
It's a combination of etymology and philology. Etymology is the history of words and philology how words change from culture to culture... many English words have come to us from a variety of cultures, indeed modern English is just a cobbled together bastardised tongue of a whole host of other nations. The great thing about it though is that language is fluid and continually evolves and develops changing over time to suit the needs of those who use it and the society it is used within. Prior to Shakespeares time however, the two most common languages used in England were Latin and French, so you could say they are the mother and father of modern English. Certainly there's plenty of examples of both of these that we use every day.
There will be stories, many apocryphal, about how certain words came into being (Kangaroo is a common one) but often they are just convenient truths and not the true history of the word. Finding out exactly how some words came into being can be very tricky. Many are just invented. Good old Shakespeare invented loads of words (20,318) many of which we use everyday and he started to begin to give the written language some structure, which we'd loosely identify today as grammar, punctuation etc. Certainly many before him contributed to our language too, but perhaps none have had a bigger effect on what is generically accepted as English today.
I'm sorry, I sound anal. I do like language though. Fascinating subject. So easy to do, but so difficult to do well.
It's a combination of etymology and philology. Etymology is the history of words and philology how words change from culture to culture... many English words have come to us from a variety of cultures, indeed modern English is just a cobbled together bastardised tongue of a whole host of other nations. The great thing about it though is that language is fluid and continually evolves and develops changing over time to suit the needs of those who use it and the society it is used within. Prior to Shakespeares time however, the two most common languages used in England were Latin and French, so you could say they are the mother and father of modern English. Certainly there's plenty of examples of both of these that we use every day.
There will be stories, many apocryphal, about how certain words came into being (Kangaroo is a common one) but often they are just convenient truths and not the true history of the word. Finding out exactly how some words came into being can be very tricky. Many are just invented. Good old Shakespeare invented loads of words (20,318) many of which we use everyday and he started to begin to give the written language some structure, which we'd loosely identify today as grammar, punctuation etc. Certainly many before him contributed to our language too, but perhaps none have had a bigger effect on what is generically accepted as English today.
I'm sorry, I sound anal. I do like language though. Fascinating subject. So easy to do, but so difficult to do well.
Sex God
Res, I think I love you! :inlove:
Sex God
Quote by Resonance
At the risk of being labelled a smart arse...
It's a combination of etymology and philology. Etymology is the history of words and philology how words change from culture to culture... many English words have come to us from a variety of cultures, indeed modern English is just a cobbled together bastardised tongue of a whole host of other nations. The great thing about it though is that language is fluid and continually evolves and develops changing over time to suit the needs of those who use it and the society it is used within. Prior to Shakespeares time however, the two most common languages used in England were Latin and French, so you could say they are the mother and father of modern English. Certainly there's plenty of examples of both of these that we use every day.
There will be stories, many apocryphal, about how certain words came into being (Kangaroo is a common one) but often they are just convenient truths and not the true history of the word. Finding out exactly how some words came into being can be very tricky. Many are just invented. Good old Shakespeare invented loads of words (20,318) many of which we use everyday and he started to begin to give the written language some structure, which we'd loosely identify today as grammar, punctuation etc. Certainly many before him contributed to our language too, but perhaps none have had a bigger effect on what is generically accepted as English today.
I'm sorry, I sound anal. I do like language though. Fascinating subject. So easy to do, but so difficult to do well.
Sex God
You have no idea how frustrated I was yesterday. Full of useful little facts about etymology, philology, word origins etc etc etc and I couldn't get the bloody forums to work. Kept getting the "can not config information" whatever message. Now been beaten to it by Resonance et al. LOL
Ah well, such is life!
Ah well, such is life!
Warming the Bed
Big Thanks to Mrs Bonedigger and Resonance for the great information 
I drive Dave mad on this subject, so big thanks from him too :thrilled:
I drive Dave mad on this subject, so big thanks from him too :thrilled:
Sex God
Quote by Resonance
At the risk of being labelled a smart arse...
It's a combination of etymology and philology. Etymology is the history of words and philology how words change from culture to culture... many English words have come to us from a variety of cultures, indeed modern English is just a cobbled together bastardised tongue of a whole host of other nations. The great thing about it though is that language is fluid and continually evolves and develops changing over time to suit the needs of those who use it and the society it is used within. Prior to Shakespeares time however, the two most common languages used in England were Latin and French, so you could say they are the mother and father of modern English. Certainly there's plenty of examples of both of these that we use every day.
There will be stories, many apocryphal, about how certain words came into being (Kangaroo is a common one) but often they are just convenient truths and not the true history of the word. Finding out exactly how some words came into being can be very tricky. Many are just invented. Good old Shakespeare invented loads of words (20,318) many of which we use everyday and he started to begin to give the written language some structure, which we'd loosely identify today as grammar, punctuation etc. Certainly many before him contributed to our language too, but perhaps none have had a bigger effect on what is generically accepted as English today.
I'm sorry, I sound anal. I do like language though. Fascinating subject. So easy to do, but so difficult to do well.
smart arse :rascal:
I have to challenge a couple of statements made earlier.
Although Latin and French were the common written languages, English was the mass spoken language I believe.
To make the leap form words first being recorded in Shakespeares plays to the assertion that he invented them is unwise I think.
Although Latin and French were the common written languages, English was the mass spoken language I believe.
To make the leap form words first being recorded in Shakespeares plays to the assertion that he invented them is unwise I think.
