Origin Uncertain
Unraveling the Mysteries of Etymology
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- USD 20.99
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- USD 20.99
Descripción editorial
Lost origins of words revealed.
We like to recount that goodbye started out as "god be with you," that whiskey comes from the Gaelic for "water of life," or that avocado originated as the Aztec word for "testicle." But there are many words with origins unknown, disputed, or so buried in old journals that they may as well be lost to the general public. In Origin Uncertain: Unraveling the Mysteries of Etymology, eminent etymologist Anatoly Liberman draws on his professional expertise and etymological database to tell the stories of less understood words such as nerd, fake, ain't, hitchhike, trash, curmudgeon, and quiz, as well as puzzling idioms like kick the bucket and pay through the nose. By casting a net so broadly, the book addresses language history, language usage (including grammar), history (both ancient and modern), religion, superstitions, and material culture.
Writing in the spirit of adventure through the annals of word origins, Liberman also shows how historical linguists construct etymologies, how to evaluate competing explanations, and how to pursue further research.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
From linguist Liberman (Take My Word for It) comes a playful foray into the elusive origins of words. Hunting for each term's antecedents, Liberman wends his way through many eras of history: for example, his investigation into the etymology of "conundrum," which has stymied scholars with its imitation of Greek and Latin, touches on a theory that the term derives from a medieval headache cure; his study of "dude," which perhaps originated as a shorthand for the early 19th century's foppish "Yankee Doodle" character, tracks usage through the late 19th century, when Oscar Wilde on his visit to America was considered "the quintessential dude." One part of the difficulty in sussing out a word's origins, Liberman explains, is that "language constantly delivers freaks, if they are accepted by the speaking community they begin to look like well-formed creatures." Other challenges are posed by "migratory words" (those brought by new people to new places) and the leapfrogging of words like "buck," as in money, over class barriers ("Words are like people," Liberman writes, "and it is no wonder that some upstarts make their way into high society and become respectable"). What makes his account especially entertaining is Liberman's energetic discrediting of lazy origin stories ("Mad as a hatter," for instance, appears to have little to do with the profession's susceptibility to mercury poisoning, despite widespread attribution). Logophiles will be delighted.
