by Roseanna White | May 7, 2012 | Word of the Week
Don’t you just love the weekend? That beautiful, sanity-saving time from Friday night until we wake up for work or school on Monday. It’s lovely. It’s brilliant. It’s necessary.
Yet really, it’s kind of new!
The word “weekend” dates back to the 1600s, but it meant, literally, the
end of the week–as in, from after church on Sunday until Monday morning. Which was the only time most people took off from their labors back then. According to
etymonline.com, it took on “general” meaning in 1878. But I’ve looked this up for a story so happen to know that at that point “general” just mean all of Sunday. Folks didn’t yet consider Saturday part of the weekend.
In Downton Abbey (circa 1912) Matthew Crawley says, “And of course we always have the weekends.” To which the dowager Lady Crawley says, aghast, “Whatever is a weekend?” This is a pretty good demonstration of the time, LOL. By the early 20th century, there was more of a traditional weekend–by which I mean, professional businesses closed after half a day on Saturday, and schools had a 5-day week, I believe. But those in lower class jobs would still have only gotten one day off. It wasn’t until the mid-20th century that it took on a two-day meaning for everyone.
And as an adjective meaning “on the weekends only” (a weekend retreat, for instance, or a weekend read), dates from 1935.
by Roseanna White | Apr 30, 2012 | Word of the Week
This is a bit silly and short a word, but I was totally surprised to learn it was so new! Well, the word condominium is from 1714, but it carried the meaning of “joint rule or sovereignty” and was word used in politics and international law. Until, that is, in the 1960s it got used to mean a “privately owned apartment” (people would be jointly ruling the building…), at which point that obliterated the original use. I had no clue it was so new in that sense!
Now, as promised last week–a picture of me in my Croquet getup, featuring hat and dress both from Victorian Trading Company. =)
by Roseanna White | Apr 23, 2012 | Word of the Week
An unexpected cold front and winter storm system is moving through the mid-atlantic–we’re only getting rain here, but a few miles to the north and up a few mountains, they’re supposed to get a foot of snow. Yikes!
But of course, that means it’s the perfect day to talk about the word ice. =) I had to look this one up yesterday to see when one of it’s uses came into play, and I was a bit surprised by some of the entries.
Ice in its main meaning has been in the English language forever–no big surprise. As a verb, still speaking of to cover with ice, is from the 1400s. But the confectionery sense arrived in the early 1700s, along with the derivative icing.
Ice Age has been used since 1832, ice cube from 1904. But here’s the one I was looking up–ice has been slang for “diamonds” since 1906. I would have thought it even later than that, but there you go. =) And the most shocking of all–break the ice. I was expecting this to be a more modern addition, but in actuality, the figurative “opening of any attempt” comes from the literal breaking of an ice to free up a passage and has been around since the 1580s! Who knew?
Hope everyone has a wonderful final week of April!
by Roseanna White | Apr 16, 2012 | Word of the Week
There are so many fun phrases involving the word “hand” that I decided it was time to share some. =) I remember several years ago looking up “to know something like the back of one’s hand.” I had a hard time finding it but eventually discovered that it’s from the 1900s, which surprised me. So I had to take that out of the Victorian story . . .
But there are lots of “hand” phrases from way back in the day. It’s had the meaning of “worker” (as in, someone who uses their hands) since the 1580s, and a hired worker since the 1630s. The clock and watch sense is from 1570s.
Yet we didn’t give someone a hand, as in a a round of applause, until 1838.
It was used for the playing cards one person held, and a round in a card game, since 1620.
First hand and second hand information is from the 15th century, following the idea of literally handing information over. On the one hand . . . on the other hand followed by the 1600s, with a notion of weighing something in your hand, or holding two separate things.
Winning something hands down, though, is from the 1830s and is thanks to horse racing–jockeys would release the reins after an easy victory, you see.
Yep, you’ve got to hand it to the word hand (c. 1906 on that one, LOL)–it sure gets around!
On a side note, my first newsletter went out on Friday. If you missed it, you can view it here. And to be sure not to miss it in the future, sign up on my website!
by Roseanna White | Apr 9, 2012 | Word of the Week
Last Friday I journeyed with the kids, my sister’s family, and my parents to the Pittsburgh zoo. We had a great time seeing all the animals, and even the car ride was fun (over two hours away). On the way home, somehow or another we got talking about food, and Xoe asked me, not for the first time, why hot dogs are called hot dogs.
Hmmm… I promised to look it up, and promptly did so. =)
Firstly, a hot dog is defined as a particular type of sausage, usually served on a split bun. Check. And in the 1890s, sausages were sometimes referred to as “dogs.” Why? Well, ahem, there was apparently a suspicion that some sausages contained dog meat. And while I didn’t see any documentation on it, the articles said this suspicion was “occasionally justified.”
Ewww. Awww. =( I didn’t tell Xoe that justified part. Just that some people accused sausage makers of it.
Anyway. So earning the name “dog” was just because it was in the sausage family. The fact that they were served on buns made them a quick and easy meal when on the go, and apparently a little boy in the 1890s rushed up to a vendor and said, “Give me a hot dog! Quick!” and it stuck. (Yeah, sounds like lure, doesn’t it? LOL) It was popularized by a cartoon that really got the name stuck.
What’s even more interesting is that it only took 6 years from “hot dog” to go from the accepted name of that particular sausage to a verb used when someone’s showing off. By 1906, “Hot dog!” as an expression of approval had gained its place too.
So now that we’re moving toward the season of picnics and cookouts, you’ll know why you’re tossing hot dogs on the grill and not frankfurters or weiners or plain ol’ sausages. 😉
by Roseanna White | Apr 2, 2012 | Word of the Week
Since it’s Holy Week, I thought I’d try to find a word that looked forward to the path that Jesus walked in these next few days–and I knew “Easter” had some background, so it was the winner. 😉
When Anglo-Saxon Christians first started celebrating the Mass of Christ’s Resurrection, they gave it the name Easter, after Eastre, the goddess of fertility and spring, whose holiday was likely the vernal equinox. All neighboring languages use a word derived from Latin pasche, or passover. (Which makes a while lot more sense.)
Easter eggs are attested from 1824, the Easter Bunny from 1909. And as a matter of fact, Easter Island is so named because the discoverer did so on Easter Monday! (Actually, he was the second to discover it, but the first didn’t bother naming it.)
And though Christianity has a long history of “taking over” pagan holidays and traditions and using them to get new converts to observe Christianity instead, I have to say I don’t like the English word. I’d never paused to consider it until my piano teacher back in the day refused to use the word “Easter” and instead called it “Resurrection Day.” (Of which I fully approve!) She would even retitle songs for our recitals when necessary. One year I was playing “Easter Song” on the organ, and it because “Resurrection Song.”
But no matter what we call it, this time of year remains my favorite. I love this week leading up to that most glorious day. This Thursday we’ll be observing Maundy Thursday with a messianic seder feast, which I’m really looking forward to. Our usual church service will be on Saturday, and Sunday morning we’ll have an outdoor sunrise service focusing on the resurrection, followed by a breakfast.
And of course, we’re cramming our school week into 3 days so that we can begin our Spring Break in time for the holiday. I hope everyone has a blessed, blessed Holy Week!
Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award winning author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary.