HOW HOUSEHOLD WORDS ORIGINATED

Southland Times, Issue 23734, 4 February 1939, Page 15

HOW HOUSEHOLD WORDS ORIGINATED

The busy housewife handling her daily tools of trade seldom has time to pause and think of their original meanings. Yet many are very interesting and well worth remembering. “Lunch,” for instance, originally was “lump,” because the first “lunch” was simply a lump of bread. “Bread” itself was “a bit.” “Jam,” of course, was just something “jammed.” But a “cup” was originally a “tub,” because the first cup had two handles like a tub, which was in use long before a cup with a handle. “Cabbages” used to; be called “cappages,” because the name is derived from the Latin “caput,” meaning a head. We took the name “potato” from the Spanish name “patata.” How many mothers have corrected their children for calling an orange a “norange”? Yet the original Persian word is “naranj,” and “norange” was once good English. Children still say a “nadder” and “napron” for an “adder” and an “apron.” Here again they are using the words as first spoken. In the case of these two words the “an” was wrongfully broken up and the “n” taken off “apron” and “adder.” Now, of course, it would be incorrect to put back the “h” as the children sometimes do. “Tomato” when It first appeared was called “tomatl,” the correct Mexican word for this fruit. Many have puzzled over the spelling of “flour,” which really means exactly the same thing as “flower.” “Spices” are the same _ as “species,” and a “saucer” had nothing to do with tea or coffee at first, but was something to hold “sauce.” Many simple household words are foreign, while some are quite classic. “Clove” is from “clou,” a “nail” in French; and “bacon” is a Danish word meaning “the back of the pig.” “Rhubarb,” one of the most interesting words, unites Greek and barbarian. This fruit originally came from the Volga river, and the “rhu” means “river,” while the “barb” refers to the barbarian country of its origin. To the cultured Greeks in the past all people were “barbarians” if they did not speak Greek. So that “rhubarb,” a Greek word, is just the plant from the Barbarian river. Our old friend

“porridge” is not, as many suppose, a Scottish word, but comes to us through the Latin “porrum,” a leek, the original porridge being a green leek pottage.

White Shoes White shoes that have become shabby can be dyed in the following way: Make a strong solution of permanganate of potash, put on the shoes and allow to dry, then apply again. Polish with brown shoe polish and the discarded shoes will look a brand new pair of dark brown ones. Brown Leather Chairs

Brown leather chairs that have become faded through being in strong sunlight can have their colour brought back to them by rubbing over the leather with linseed oil and polishing with a soft, dry duster.