Author Topic: The random etymology of the day (Read 237841 times)

Jonathon · « **Reply #250 on:** July 25, 2006, 01:27:51 PM »

Do I get a trophy?

Brinestone · « **Reply #251 on:** July 25, 2006, 04:03:43 PM »

I was thinking more along the lines of a plaque.

rivka · « **Reply #252 on:** July 25, 2006, 04:37:03 PM »

Jonathon · « **Reply #253 on:** July 31, 2006, 08:23:13 PM »

Gesundheit, as you may know, is simply German for "health." I always thought it a little odd that it was such a long word for something that's so short in English, and even odder that it would bear no obvious relation to the English word. Its relation to English becomes a little clearer if you know just what English words it's related to.

Gesund is cognate with sound (as in "safe and sound" or "of sound mind"), and it means "whole" or "healthy." The English word lost the ge- prefix during Middlel English. The suffix -heit is cognate with the English -hood, which means essentially "condition or quality."

So if you were to form an English calque (piece-by-piece literal translation) from gesundheit, you would get soundhood (though English has soundness instead).

JT · « **Reply #254 on:** August 02, 2006, 07:59:30 PM »

As in, 'of sound body and mind', huh?

Interesting.

*descends deeper into nerdhood*

Noemon · « **Reply #255 on:** August 02, 2006, 09:17:50 PM »

Quote

As in, 'of sound body and mind', huh?

Interesting.

*descends deeper into nerdhood*

::nonono::

You mean "descends deeper into cooldom*"

*for certain values of cool.

Porter · « **Reply #256 on:** August 02, 2006, 09:25:54 PM »

Jonathon · « **Reply #257 on:** August 11, 2006, 10:16:09 AM »

This one really is random, but I found it interesting: vindaloo (as in the type of curry) is not an authentic Hindi word, but was borrowed into Hindi from the Portuguese vin d'alho, "wine and garlic sauce."

Porter · « **Reply #258 on:** August 11, 2006, 11:09:06 AM »

That is awesome.

Jonathon · « **Reply #259 on:** August 11, 2006, 11:19:36 AM »

No, that avatar is awesome.

Porter · « **Reply #260 on:** August 11, 2006, 11:21:02 AM »

And deaf.

Brinestone · « **Reply #261 on:** August 11, 2006, 01:18:09 PM »

Vindaloo curry reminds me of House.

Porter · « **Reply #262 on:** August 11, 2006, 01:18:53 PM »

Vindaloo curry reminds me of Red Dwarf.

weezer · « **Reply #263 on:** August 11, 2006, 02:10:46 PM »

Vindaloo curry reminds me of this discussion.

Jonathon · « **Reply #264 on:** August 11, 2006, 02:16:05 PM »

At least we know your short-term memory is working.

rivka · « **Reply #265 on:** August 11, 2006, 02:22:36 PM »

What did you say?

Jonathon · « **Reply #266 on:** August 11, 2006, 02:39:43 PM »

I said, "At least we know that you won't remember this five minutes from now."

weezer · « **Reply #267 on:** August 11, 2006, 02:47:29 PM »

What are you talking about?

pooka · « **Reply #268 on:** August 11, 2006, 08:17:40 PM »

He'd used "tautology" too recently to unleash that on you, is all.

Porter · « **Reply #269 on:** August 11, 2006, 08:42:21 PM »

Tautologies are true.

Jonathon · « **Reply #270 on:** August 17, 2006, 03:03:45 PM »

omega = o mega = great o
omicron = o micron = little o

DUH.

rivka · « **Reply #271 on:** August 17, 2006, 03:18:24 PM »

Yes, that is obvious once you point it out. But it's cool anyway.

Jonathon · « **Reply #272 on:** August 17, 2006, 03:21:35 PM »

In my book, "obvious" and "cool" are by no means mutually exclusive.

Noemon · « **Reply #273 on:** August 17, 2006, 05:06:13 PM »

That's so interesting! I'm surprised I hadn't already noticed it.

rivka · « **Reply #274 on:** August 17, 2006, 05:21:19 PM »

Quote

In my book, "obvious" and "cool" are by no means mutually exclusive.

True 'nuff.