Category: French (français)

Adventures in Etymology – Crotchet (♩)

By Simon

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In this adventure we investigate the origins of the word crotchet and related things.

Crotchet

A crotchet [ˈkɹɒtʃ.ɪt] is:

  • A musical note one beat long in 4/4 time (♩), also known as a quarter note in the USA
  • A forked support or crotch
  • A square bracket []

Historically it meant:

  • A sharp curve or crook; a shape resembling a hook
  • A hook-shaped instrument
  • A whim or a fancy.

It comes from Middle English crochet (hook, crook, hooked staff), from Old French crochet (small hook) from croc (hook, hook-shaped weapon), from Frankish *krōk- (hook), or Old Norse krókr (hook), from Proto-Germanic *krōkaz (hook) [source].

Words from the same roots include crochet and crook in English, crúca (hook, crook, clutch, claw) in Irish, and crochet (hook, square bracket, fang) and croche (quaver / eighth note) in French [source].

The musical note was apparently called a crotchet because it had a small hook on its stem in old musical notation. In modern notation it’s the quaver (eighth note) that has the hook (a.k.a. tail) ♪.

Incidentally, quaver comes from Middle English quaven, cwaiven (to tremble), from Old English *cwifer, which is probably related to cwic (alive, living, intelligent, keen) [source].

Here’s an example of some crotchets, quavers and other musical notes in action in a tune I wrote a few years ago called Dancing on Custard played by me on the harp:

You can find a score for it on MuseScore – this is not exactly the same as the recording.

I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the Celtiadur.

You can also listen to this podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Stitcher, TuneIn, Podchaser, PlayerFM or podtail.

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

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Celtic Pathways – Phoney Rings

By Simon

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In this episode we look into the possibly Celtic roots of the word phoney, and find out how it is connected to words for ring and related things.

Irish Claddagh Ring

The Proto-Celtic word *ānniyos means ring, and comes from Proto-Indo-European *h₁eh₂no- (ring). [source].

Descendents in the modern Celtic languages include:

  • fáinne [ˈfˠɑːɲə/ˈfˠæːn̠ʲə] = ring, circle, ringlet, curl or halo in Irish.
  • fàinne [faːn̪ʲə] = ring, ringlet or circle in Scottish Gaelic
  • fainney = circle, puck, wreathe or ring in Manx

The English word phon(e)y (fraudulent, fake) possibly comes from the old slang word fawney (a finger ring, a gilt brass ring used by swindlers), from the Irish fáinne (ring) [source].

The Hiberno-English word fainne [ˈfɑnjə/ˈfɔnjə], which refers to a pin badge worn to show fluency in, or a willingness to speak Irish, also comes from the same Irish root [source]. More information about the fainne badge: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fáinne

Other words from the same PIE root, via the Latin ānus (ring, anus) include annular (ring-shaped, banded/marked with circles) and anus in English, անուր (anur – collar, oppression, yoke) in Armenian, anneau (ring) in French, and anello (ring, link) in Italian [source].

You can find more details of words for circles, rings and related things on the Celtiadur blog. I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

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Adventures in Etymology – Twilight

By Simon

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In this adventure we investigate the origins of the word twilight.

Kent Estuary from Arnside

Twilight [ˈtwaɪˌlaɪt] means:

  • The soft light in the sky seen before the rising and (especially) after the setting of the sun, occasioned by the illumination of the earth’s atmosphere by the direct rays of the sun and their reflection on the earth.
  • The time when this light is visible; the period between daylight and darkness

It comes from Middle English twilight (twilight), from twi- (double, half) and li(g)ht (light), which ultimately come from PIE *dwi- (two, double), and *lewk- (light). So twilight means ‘second/half light’ [source].

There are three different kinds of twilight: astronomical twilight, civil twilight and nautical twilight [source]. The difference between them involves how far the sun is below the horizon [source]

Twilight is also known as the blue hour, a calque of the French term heure bleue as the sky become a deep blue during twilight. [source].

In French it is also known as entre chien et loup (“between dog and wolf”) – a calque of the Latin inter canem et lupum, which means the same thing – because at twilight the difference between a dog and a wolf is not clear. [source].

Another word for twilight, used in northern England and Scotland, is gloaming, from Old English glōm (gloom, twilight, darkness) [source].

The prefix twi- appears in other English words, although few are currently used. They include: twifaced (having two faces, deceitful), twithought (a vague, uncertain or indistinct thought, doubt), twi-tongued (having two tongues, deceitful), and twi-minded (double-minded, uncertain, doubtful) [source].

I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the Celtiadur.

You can also listen to this podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Stitcher, TuneIn, Podchaser, PlayerFM or podtail.

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

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Celtic Pathways – Cream

By Simon

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In this episode we look into the Celtic roots of the word cream.

Chocolate Cream Pie

Cream comes from Middle English cre(i)me (cream, chrism [a mixture of oil and balsam]), from Old French cresme (cream), from Late Latin crāmum (cream), probably from Gaulish *crama, from Proto-Celtic *krammen (skin), from Proto-Indo-European (s)krama- [source].

Descendents in the modern Celtic languages possibly include:

  • screamh = a deposit on surface, coating, crust, scum in Irish.
  • sgrath [sɡrah] = bark, husk, peel, skin, crust in Scottish Gaelic
  • scrooig = crust, incrustation, scab, slime, scale in Manx
  • cramen [ˈkramɛn] = scab, sore, boil, crust, layer in Welsh
  • kragh = scab in Cornish
  • kramm = grime, filth in Breton

Other words from the same Proto-Celtic root include crème (cream, cool) in French, schram (scratch, scrape, graze) in Dutch, and creme (cream [coloured]) in German.

Incidentally, the Old English word for cream was rēam [ræ͜ɑːm], which comes from Proto-Germanic *raumaz (skin, film, cream), from PIE *réwgʰmn̥ (cream). A descendent of this word, ream, is apparently still used for cream in English dialects in northern England [source], and in Scots [source].

You can find more details of words for beaks, snouts and related things on the Celtiadur blog. I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

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Adventures in Etymology – Busk

By Simon

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In this Adventure we investigate the origins of the word busk.

Clanadonia

Busk [bʌsk] means:

  • To solicit money by entertaining the public in the street or in public transport.
  • To sell articles such as obscene books in public houses etc. (obsolete)
  • To tack, cruise about (nautical)

It possibly comes from French busquer (to seek, prowl, filch, busk), from Old Spanish buscar/boscar (to look for, to collect wood), from Vulgar Latin *buscum (wood), from Frankish *busk (wood), from Proto-Germanic *buskaz (bush, thicket) from PIE *bʰuH- (to be, become, grow) [source].

Words from the same roots include (to) be, bower, neighbour and future in English, boer (farmer, peasant) and buur (neighbour) in Dutch, and verbs meaning to be in most Indo-European languages [source]

There are several homophones/homographs of busk with different meanings. For example, there is busk that refers to to a strip of metal, whalebone, wood, or other material, worn in the front of a corset to stiffen it, and by extension, a corset. This comes from French busc (busk [of corset]), from Italian busco (splinter), probably from Frankish *busk (wood) [source].

Then there is busk that means to prepare, make ready, array, dress, or to go or direct one’s course. It’s used in northern England and Scotland and comes from Middle English busken (to prepare, get ready, arrange), from Old Norse būask, from būa (to prepare, make, live, dress, decorate), from Proto-Germanic *būaną (to dwell, reside), from PIE *bʰuH- (to be, become, grow) [source].

So it seems that even though these words have different meanings, they possibly all come from the same PIE root (*bʰuH-).

I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the Celtiadur.

You can also listen to this podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Stitcher, TuneIn, Podchaser, PlayerFM or podtail.

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

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Celtic Pathways – Gobs and Beaks

By Simon

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In this episode we look into the Celtic roots of English words like gob and beak.

Geese

The Proto-Celtic word *gobbos means muzzle, snout or beak. It comes from PIE *ǵebʰ- (jaw, mouth) [source].

Descendents in the modern Celtic languages include:

  • gob [ɡɔbˠ] = beak, bill, tip, point or projection in Irish.
  • gob [ɡob] = beak, bill, gob, pointed/sharp end or corner in Scottish Gaelic
  • gob = apex, headland, hook, jet, point, promontory, beak, nib, spout, mouth or muzzle in Manx

The English word gob, which is a slang word for mouth in the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, was borrowed from Irish or Scottish Gaelic. [source].

It also means a lump of soft or sticky material, saliva, phlegm and various other things, and that version of the word comes from the same Proto-Celtic roots via Middle French go(u)be (lump, mouthful), and Gaulish *gobbos (mouth) [source].

Other words from the same Proto-Celtic roots include gober (to swallow whole) and gobelet (goblet, cup, beaker) in French, and goblet in English [source].

Another Proto-Celtic word for beak or snout is *bekkos. The only descendent in the modern Celtic languages that I can find is beg (beak, mouth, point, mouthpiece, embouchure) in Breton [source].

Words from the same Proto-Celtic root, via the Gaulish *bekkos (beak, snout) and the Latin beccus (beak, bill), include bec (beak, bill, mouth) in French, beco (beak, mouthpiece, burner) in Italian, bico (beak, bill, snout, rostrum) in Portuguese, pico (beak, sharp point, pickaxe, peak, spout) in Spanish, and beak in English [source].

You can find more details of words for beaks, snouts and related things on the Celtiadur blog. I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

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Celtic Pathways – Hogging Sockets

By Simon

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In this episode we find out what links the words hog and socket with words for pig, ploughshare and related things in Celtic languages.

Family of Feral Hogs

The Proto-Celtic word sukkos means a pig (snout) or ploughshare, presumably because ploughshares looked like pig’s snouts. It comes from the Proto-Indo-European *súH-s (pig, hog, swine) [source]

Descendents in the modern Celtic languages include:

  • soc [sˠɔk] = sow in Irish.
  • soc [sɔxg] = beak, snout, socket, ploughshare, or a short, chubby person in Scottish Gaelic
  • sock = bow, nose, snout, ploughshare, jet or nozzle in Manx
  • hwch [huːχ] = sow, pig, swine, or a dirty creature in Welsh
  • hogh = hog, pig or swine in Cornish
  • houc’h = sow in Breton

Words from the same Proto-Celtic root in other languages include socket and possibly hog in English, and soc (ploughshare) in French.

The word socket comes from the Middle English soket, from the Anglo-Norman soket (spearhead), from the Old French soc (ploughshare), from the Vulgar Latin *soccus, from the Proto-Celtic *sokkos, probably via Gaulish [source].

The word hog comes from the Middle English hog(ge) (pig, swine, pig meat, hogget [young sheep]), from the Old English hogg (hog), either the Old Norse hǫggva (to hew), or from the Proto-Brythonic *hux (pig) [source].

The English word hoggan (a pork pasty), which is used mainly in Cornwall, probably comes from the Old Cornish hoggan/hogen) (pork pasty, pie), from hoch (pig), from the Proto-Brythonic *hux (pig). The word oggy/oggie (pasty), which is used in Devon and Cornwall, and also in Wales, comes from the same roots [source].

Welsh oggies are larger than Cornish pasties and contain lamb, potatoes and leeks. Here’s a recipe.

Oggie

Incidentally, the Welsh words hogyn (boy) and hogen (girl), which are used mainly in North Wales, come from hòg (young/little boy, youth, lad, fellow), from the English hogg (young sheep or hogget), from the Middle English hogget (a boar/sheep of the second year), from Anglo-Norman hog(g)et (young boar) and an Anglo-Latin hogettus [source].

You can find more details of words for pig and related beasts on the Celtiadur blog. I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

The Fastest Way to Learn Japanese Guaranteed with JapanesePod101.com

Adventures in Etymology – Bureau

By Simon

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In this Adventure we are investigating the fiery origins of the word bureau.

Bureau du château de Beaumesnil

A bureau [ˈbjʊɹ.əʊ/ˈbjʊɹ.oʊ] is:

  • An administrative unit of government
  • An organization or office for collecting or providing information or news.
  • A desk, usually with a cover and compartments (mainly UK)
  • A chest of drawers for clothes (mainly USA)

It comes from French bureau [by.ʁo] (desk, office, ticket office, office staff), from Old French burel (frieze [coarse woolen cloth], garment made of frieze) from Late Latin burra (a small cow with a red muzzle; a shaggy garment), from burrus (red, reddish-brown), from Ancient πυρρός [pyr̥.r̥ós] (flame-coloured, redheaded) from πῦρ [pŷːr] (fire, lighning, fever), from PIE *péh₂wr̥ (fire) [source].

How did we get from coarse fabric to a desk to an office? Well, back in the 14th century the French word bureau meant a carpet on which one did one’s accounts, probably made of coarse fabric. Later a table for doing accounts, then a place where you do your accounts, and by the 16th century it meant an establishment open to the public where a service of collective interest is undertaken [source].

The word burel (a coarse woolen cloth) also exists in English and was borrowed from Old French [source], and the old word borrel (a mean, ignorant or unlearned fellow) probably comes from the same roots [source].

The English prefix pyro- (fire, heat, fever), as in pyromancy (divination by fire), pyrometer (a thermometer designed to measure high temperatures) and pyroclast (solid matter ejected into the air by an active volcano) comes from the same PIE root [source], as do such words as fire, pyre and purge [source].

Here’s a video I made of this information:

Video made with Doodly [afflilate link].

I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the Celtiadur.

You can also listen to this podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Stitcher, TuneIn, Podchaser, PlayerFM or podtail.

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

The Fastest Way to Learn Japanese Guaranteed with JapanesePod101.com

Celtic Pathways – Truant

By Simon

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

In this episode we find out what links the word truant with words for beggar, wretch and related things in Celtic and other languages.

Begging

Truant [ˈtɹʊənt/ˈtɹuː.ənt] means:

  • Absent without permission, especially from school.
  • Wandering from business or duty; straying; loitering; idle, and shirking duty
  • One who is absent without permission, especially from school.

It comes from Middle English truant/truand (one who receives alms, a begger, vagabond, vagrant, scoundrel, rogue, shiftless or good-for-nothing fellow) from Old French truand (vagabond, beggar, rogue), either from Gaulish *trugan (wretch), or from Breton truant (beggar), possibly from Proto-Indo-European *terh₁- (to rub, turn, drill, pierce) [source].

Related words in the modern Celtic languages include:

  • trua [t̪ˠɾˠuə] = pity, sympathy, compassion, miserable person or wretch in Irish.
  • truaghan [truəɣan] = poor soul, poor thing or wretch in Scottish Gaelic
  • truanagh = miserable, mournful or sorrowful person in Manx
  • truan = wretch, miserable person; wretched, miserable, pathetic, poor or weak in Welsh
  • truan = sad, miserable, unfortunate or wretched in Cornish
  • truant = beggar in Breton

Other words from the same Proto-Celtic root include truand [tʁy.ɑ̃] (crook, gangster, beggar) in French [source], truhan [tɾuˈan] (scoundrel, scammer, swindler, rogue, crook, [historically] jester, buffoon) in Spanish, truão (jester) in Portuguese, and trogo (jester) in Galician [source].

Incidentally, words for truant in Celtic languages include: fánach in Irish, air falach in Scottish Gaelic, truggan in Manx, and triwant in Welsh.

What do you call the action of playing truant?

For me its skiving (off) and when you do it, you’re a skiver.

Here’s a video I made of this information:

Video made with Doodly [afflilate link].

You can find more details of these words on the Celtiadur blog. I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

The Fastest Way to Learn Japanese Guaranteed with JapanesePod101.com

Celtic Pathways – Berets

By Simon

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

In this episode we’re uncovering the Celtic origins of the word beret.

Fête du Boeuf Gras à Bazas

A beret [ˈbɛɹ.eɪ/bəˈɹeɪ] is:

  • A type of round, brimless cap with a soft top and a headband to secure it to the head; usually culturally associated with France.

It comes from the French béret (beret), from the Occitan (Gascon) berret (cap), from the Medieval Latin birretum (a kind of hat), from the Late Latin birrus (a large hooded cloak, a cloak to keep off rain, made of silk or wool), from the Gaulish birrus (a coarse kind of thick woollen cloth; a woollen cap or hood worn over the shoulders or head), from the Proto-Celtic *birros (short), the origins of which are not known [source]

Descendents in the modern Celtic languages include:

  • bearr [bˠɑːɾˠ] = to clip, cut, trim, shave, skim (milk), crop or pare (photos) in Irish.
  • beàrr [baːr̪ˠ] = to shave, cut (hair), clip, shear or prune in Scottish Gaelic
  • baarey = to bare, clip, cut, dress, poll, prune, shave or trimmed in Manx
  • byr [bɨ̞r/bɪr] = short, brief or concise in Welsh
  • berr [bɛɹ] = short or brief in Cornish
  • berr = short in Breton

Other words from the Proto-Celtic root *birros, via Latin and Gaulish, include biretta (a square cap worn by some Roman Catholic priests) and berretto (beanie, cap) in Italian, barrete (biretta, cap) in Portuguese, birrete (biretta) in French, and βίρρος [ˈβir.ros] (a type of cloak or mantle) in Ancient Greek [source].

Biretta

Incidentally, words from beret in Celtic languages include: bairéad (beret, biretta, cap, hat, bonnet) in Irish, beeray or bayrn Frangagh (“French cap/hat”) in Manx, bere(t)/bered in Welsh, and béret/bered/boned in Breton.

You can find more details of these words on the Celtiadur blog. I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog.

Here’s a video I made of this information:

Video made with Doodly [afflilate link].

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

The Fastest Way to Learn Japanese Guaranteed with JapanesePod101.com