Nana_English
07-13-2009, 10:00 PM
Have you ever thought what is the story behind words in English ..
هل سمعت من قبل عن بعض القصص التى تروى عن تسمية بعض الكلمات ..
Black mail الإبتزاز
Current meaning: the practice of requiring money, favors or the equivalent from a person or group in return for not revealing sensitive information
Where it came from: The term “mail” as a euphemism for rental monies appears to be a uniquely Scottish term, but it is still in vogue today. How precisely it arose is still a mystery, but the term has given birth to two related phrases, both of which passed into the English langua
ge because of the habit of Scottish bands launching raids across the border into England. The farmers and small landholders who lived near the border were the standard prey fro these raids; consequently, life in that region was eventful to say the least. Beginning sometime around the time of Edward II, more powerful bands began exacting tribute from some of these wretches; in the terminology of Scotland then, the bands began taking “mail” from the smallholders. If the tribute was paid in silver, it was known as “white mail,” while “black mail” was paid in grain, wood or animals. As the raiders were generally looking for fodder for horses and food for the fighters, “black mail” was preferred, leading to the current usage of the word.
Echo الصدى( صدى الصوت)
Current meaning: the reverberation of sound due to sonic reflection from hard surfaces
Where it came from: The Greeks, at a loss to explain many of the phenomena of the natural world through their infant science, resorted often to mysticism and legend to devise reasons for certain occurrences. According to myth, then, Echo was the name of a nymph. Zeus, king of the gods, liked the company of nymphs, but his wife Hera was not so broad-minded.
Accordingly, Zeus charged Echo with keeping Hera busy while the king of gods sought out the nymphs of his choosing. Although initially successful, Hera eventually realize that the only time the chatterbox Echo was around was when Zeus was off doing things he ought not to do; enraged at the deception, Hera cursed the hapless nymph. The details of the curse, as explained by the later Roman poet Ovid, were that she could not speak unless first spoken to, could not keep silence when spoken to and could only repeat that which was spoken to her. In this state of affairs, she happened upon the youth Narcissus (from which we get the flower’s name) admiring himself, and did herself the further disservice of falling in love with the self-absorbed youth. Her love was not returned, and she eventually retired into a cave, where she died of a broken heart. Her voice, however, is still present with us, and the phenomenon which bears her name has come down to us unchanged.
Mascara الماسكرة
Current meaning: the substance applied to eyelashes to thicken, darken or enhance
Where it comes from: The practice of applying makeup to the lashes and around the eyes can be reliably dated back to ancient Egypt and may have existed before that. The Egyptians used kohl to darken the eye pit and thicken the lashes as a means of protection against the blazing desert sun. The Arabs of the Sinai, however, eschewed the practice and derided the people who applied kohl to their faces as “mosq’hara,” literally “clowns.” From this root word, which passed into French after the Moorish invasion, and thence into English, we get our words “masquerade” (to pretend to be something or someone else) and “mascara.”
Tattoo التاتو ( الوشم)
Current meaning: a rapid patter, generally beaten on a drum; a marking of skin with ink
Where it comes from: Although the two words are spelled and said the same, they originate halfway around the world from each other. The rapid drumming signal has long been used in conventional armies to signal curfew or soldier recall, and was originally know as a “night-beat.” Ho
wever, Dutch soldiers on leave were given one half-hour past the call to return to camp, which was adequate time for one final round of drinks. The Dutch phrase “Tap toe” which is pronounced “tattoo,” is the equivalent of the American “last call,” and would be uttered by bartenders after the nightly recall was sounded. English allies mistook the phrase for referring to the drumbeat, and applied the word to the signal.
On the other hand, the indelible marking of the skin with paint or ink was a well-known Polynesian practice. In that culture, the designs (and sometimes ritual scarring) were used to signify everything from adulthood to marital status to social level. Only the youngest of the tribes were generally unmarked. English explorers and missionaries, arriving in the Polynesian islands, began to adopt the custom, and the practice rapidly spread throughout the English-speaking world. The Polynesian natives call the process “tatau,” which the English quickly corrupted into the already-common “tattoo.”
Tea الشاى
Current meaning: A drink made from the steeped leaves or stems of the tea bush
Where it comes from: We have the Dutch to thank for this word as well. Portuguese traders were the first to introduce the drink to Europe, after establishing seaborne trade routes to China. The Cantonese word for the drink is “cha,” which the Portuguese used in selling the beverage (this phrase survives today in the English word “chai”). However, the Dutch found a more ready market for the drink among their own people and began importing the leaves from Formosa (now Taiwan), using the Amoy word “te” as the designation. The English, who traded mainly with the Dutch, corrupted the word to “tea.”
هل سمعت من قبل عن بعض القصص التى تروى عن تسمية بعض الكلمات ..
Black mail الإبتزاز
Current meaning: the practice of requiring money, favors or the equivalent from a person or group in return for not revealing sensitive information
Where it came from: The term “mail” as a euphemism for rental monies appears to be a uniquely Scottish term, but it is still in vogue today. How precisely it arose is still a mystery, but the term has given birth to two related phrases, both of which passed into the English langua
ge because of the habit of Scottish bands launching raids across the border into England. The farmers and small landholders who lived near the border were the standard prey fro these raids; consequently, life in that region was eventful to say the least. Beginning sometime around the time of Edward II, more powerful bands began exacting tribute from some of these wretches; in the terminology of Scotland then, the bands began taking “mail” from the smallholders. If the tribute was paid in silver, it was known as “white mail,” while “black mail” was paid in grain, wood or animals. As the raiders were generally looking for fodder for horses and food for the fighters, “black mail” was preferred, leading to the current usage of the word.
Echo الصدى( صدى الصوت)
Current meaning: the reverberation of sound due to sonic reflection from hard surfaces
Where it came from: The Greeks, at a loss to explain many of the phenomena of the natural world through their infant science, resorted often to mysticism and legend to devise reasons for certain occurrences. According to myth, then, Echo was the name of a nymph. Zeus, king of the gods, liked the company of nymphs, but his wife Hera was not so broad-minded.
Accordingly, Zeus charged Echo with keeping Hera busy while the king of gods sought out the nymphs of his choosing. Although initially successful, Hera eventually realize that the only time the chatterbox Echo was around was when Zeus was off doing things he ought not to do; enraged at the deception, Hera cursed the hapless nymph. The details of the curse, as explained by the later Roman poet Ovid, were that she could not speak unless first spoken to, could not keep silence when spoken to and could only repeat that which was spoken to her. In this state of affairs, she happened upon the youth Narcissus (from which we get the flower’s name) admiring himself, and did herself the further disservice of falling in love with the self-absorbed youth. Her love was not returned, and she eventually retired into a cave, where she died of a broken heart. Her voice, however, is still present with us, and the phenomenon which bears her name has come down to us unchanged.
Mascara الماسكرة
Current meaning: the substance applied to eyelashes to thicken, darken or enhance
Where it comes from: The practice of applying makeup to the lashes and around the eyes can be reliably dated back to ancient Egypt and may have existed before that. The Egyptians used kohl to darken the eye pit and thicken the lashes as a means of protection against the blazing desert sun. The Arabs of the Sinai, however, eschewed the practice and derided the people who applied kohl to their faces as “mosq’hara,” literally “clowns.” From this root word, which passed into French after the Moorish invasion, and thence into English, we get our words “masquerade” (to pretend to be something or someone else) and “mascara.”
Tattoo التاتو ( الوشم)
Current meaning: a rapid patter, generally beaten on a drum; a marking of skin with ink
Where it comes from: Although the two words are spelled and said the same, they originate halfway around the world from each other. The rapid drumming signal has long been used in conventional armies to signal curfew or soldier recall, and was originally know as a “night-beat.” Ho
wever, Dutch soldiers on leave were given one half-hour past the call to return to camp, which was adequate time for one final round of drinks. The Dutch phrase “Tap toe” which is pronounced “tattoo,” is the equivalent of the American “last call,” and would be uttered by bartenders after the nightly recall was sounded. English allies mistook the phrase for referring to the drumbeat, and applied the word to the signal.
On the other hand, the indelible marking of the skin with paint or ink was a well-known Polynesian practice. In that culture, the designs (and sometimes ritual scarring) were used to signify everything from adulthood to marital status to social level. Only the youngest of the tribes were generally unmarked. English explorers and missionaries, arriving in the Polynesian islands, began to adopt the custom, and the practice rapidly spread throughout the English-speaking world. The Polynesian natives call the process “tatau,” which the English quickly corrupted into the already-common “tattoo.”
Tea الشاى
Current meaning: A drink made from the steeped leaves or stems of the tea bush
Where it comes from: We have the Dutch to thank for this word as well. Portuguese traders were the first to introduce the drink to Europe, after establishing seaborne trade routes to China. The Cantonese word for the drink is “cha,” which the Portuguese used in selling the beverage (this phrase survives today in the English word “chai”). However, the Dutch found a more ready market for the drink among their own people and began importing the leaves from Formosa (now Taiwan), using the Amoy word “te” as the designation. The English, who traded mainly with the Dutch, corrupted the word to “tea.”