Category Archives: Origins of Words

The Pope’s there for life, right? Wrong!

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Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Benedict XVI

What?! …The Pope doesn’t want to be the pope anymore? …Oscar Pistorious is in court, six months after the Olympics, charged with premeditated murder?

Both these news reports beggar belief.

Last weekend, if I had asked anyone if they thought the Pope was “in post” for life and if they thought Pistorious was a hero, it would be fair to say the results would have been a resounding “yes”. But this week, these two unrelated news stories have changed all that; they have shaken two widely held beliefs to the core, leaving us bewildered, baffled, blindsided.

Core beliefs are the essence of how we see ourselves, other people, our world. They develop over time; they are strongly held, rigid, inflexible, and are often maintained by a tendency to focus on information that supports that belief. The last time a pope resigned was 600 years ago, and millions of us watched Pistorius, a double amputee athlete, sprint down the track at the London Olympics – pretty convincing stuff.

Oscar Pistorious - London 2012

Oscar Pistorious – London 2012

Have we put the Pope and Pistorius on pedestals? Undoubtedly. The Pope was placed there by his peers; Pistorius ran all the way up the steps. Being the pope for life is a “tough gig”, and the pressure of celebrity must be enormous for both of them. It now appears our widely held beliefs that “popes are for life” and “athletes are heroes forever” need changing. Changing a core belief is actually quite easy; you simply stop believing them. It doesn’t take much time… In these two scenarios, it was a matter of days.

Catholic Church (England and Wales) / Foter.com /

CC BY-NC-SA Sum_of_Marc / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-ND

You can’t make cheesecake from snow…

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Inuit

Inuit little girl

You can’t make cheesecake from snow… This is an expression from the Inuit community, a group of indigenous people inhabiting the Arctic regions of Greenland, Canada and eastern Siberia. It means to work with what you have.

Expressions often reflect the culture – and the climate – from which they originate. This pearl of wisdom incorporates one of North America’s favourite desserts, but neatly ties it to the omnipresence of the snow and the bitterly cold Arctic landscape.

My children’s school was closed today and my husband came home mid-morning from the office. Weather forecasters had been predicting the snowfall all week; they were right – almost to the hour. I was prepared for today’s white-out; there’s enough food and drink in the house to sink a ship, should we be “snowed in” for several days.

One of the beauties of weather throwing your routine into disarray is there is nothing you can do: you simply have to work with what you have. You can’t make cheesecakes from snow; I must tell the kids..

Photo credit: nick_russill / Foter.com / CC BY

 

Can you sum up 2012 in one word? I think I can…

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LondonAnnie / Foter / CC BY-NC-ND

Words enter common parlance through different means. Before the digital age, words traditionally entered language through invasion (not so good), and from interaction with foreigners, learning from their culture, and then “borrowing” from their language.

In 2012, I would suggest there is one word that has entered the English language in record time from a different track, based on its spectacular reach, its universal recognition – and its charm. It was the name awarded to a gesture you could do from your armchair or – to give the game away – your stadium seat!

Yes – it’s the mobot!

For me, Mo Farah’s hand-to-head ‘M’ sums up the year 2012, and all its greatness, in one simple engaging gesture. It is at once delightful, universally understood and – now – inextricably linked to one of the greatest Olympian athletes of all time.

Blow me down… there is even a mobot dance! You can see the dance and download the video from The Mo Farah Foundation. The charity seeks to provide food, water, medical care and shelter for children in Somalia.

Mo Farah is a double Olympic champion and the UK’s greatest distance runner – ever. He ran his way into the record books without crossing any borders… just the finishing line within the Olympic Stadium at London 2012, in spectacular style. I would also venture that he provided us with a word for the English language, as well as a dance, in record time, too.

Is there a word that sums up 2012 for you? Is it a word that, in January, would have been meaningless? I would love to hear your 2012 stories.

Photo credit: LondonAnnie / Foter / CC BY-NC-ND

Can you remember your school homework?

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e. david / Foter / CC BY-NC-ND

I can. It was Friday. I was eight. This task set the agenda for the weekend. The whole family got involved: my father participated from the bath; my mother chimed in through the window from the garden; my younger brother asked what all the fuss was about. I listened and I learned. I was to remember the learning outcomes from this homework for a lifetime.

Our task was to compile a list of as many proverbs as we could. The race was on. The homework caught my parents imagination; they were firing expressions at me left, right and centre. I was catching them as best I could, writing them down and asking what they meant. I was captivated by the idea that a simple expression could be universally understood as meaning something other than the words on the page.

I remember writing them frantically, thinking I would surely have the most in the class. I arrived at school on the Monday morning brandishing a list of around 130. I was pipped at the post by my friend, Kate, who had beaten me by an astonishing twenty proverbs!

Now, as an adult, I use proverbs in conversation as a mutually understood shorthand. The acceptance of metaphorical expressions invoked in proverb use can be used to cut to the chase, disagree, enhance or redirect a conversation in a manner that is acceptable, inoffensive and colourful.

Can you remember some school homework that has stayed with you into adulthood? Has something you learned at the age of eight stayed with you for a lifetime? I would love to hear your stories…

Does this blog look and read “okay”?

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Saying OKHow many times a day do you say the word “okay”? My guess is – quite a lot.

The word “okay” is so versatile. Depending on how it is used in the sentence, or the tone of the speaker’s voice, it can be used to denote approval and agreement, or to indicate mediocrity. It can be used to enquire, confirm, describe or – with an elongated ‘kay – it can even convey scepticism or sarcasm. Public speakers use it to call the audience’s attention to the start of their speech. Regular texters are taking the term to the next level by just texting “K” to indicate agreement; the thin edge of an already slim wedge…

But where did the term come from?

It is said that the word “Okay” stems from the Greek words “Ola Kala” meaning “everything’s fine”. When Greek shipping dominated world trade two centuries ago, signalmen hoisted flags for ‘OK’ when they entered American ports, indicating to the shore crews everything was all right. On shore, warehousemen would find the Greek letters “O K” stamped on crates and boxes. Over time, the term “Okay” came to signify approval and agreement.

So, as long as two centuries ago, shipping companies were “getting the okay” – the clearance – to confirm the crates and boxes were present, correct and “good to go”.

The same requirement to check things over is true of today’s business writers with their blogs, newsletters and various marketing collateral. Do they seek “the okay” before their materials are exported into the public domain?

Proofreading is a very important part of writing. For business writers with good language skills, the services of a professional proofreader can ensure – and “give the okay” – signalling the final document is error-free, easy to read and “ready to ship”.

The Tans will Fade, but the Memories will Last Forever…

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Olympic gold medalsIt’s the school holidays; August bank holiday weekend is around the corner and, in true British style, it’s raining cats and dogs. The British weather is well ingrained into our national psyche; this is borne out by the number of “overcast” weather-related proverbs that add vibrancy to our language.

I sometimes think that our unpredictable climate may add weight to our nation’s pessimistic outlook. “Us Brits” looked ahead to the Olympics with the view that we could not possibly pull off an event of this magnitude and significance with any degree of style and efficiency. As for the weather? Well… that was out of our hands. The British stiff upper lip quivered at the thought of a myriad of visitors to London being disappointed by our capital, culture and climate.

The rest is history. We witnessed a gold-laced British summertime event that delivered medals in spades. The weather even entered into the spirit and played ball. What unfolded was a British sporting showcase based in London that surpassed all expectations. The Olympics organisers seemed to have thought of everything; even our “mind’s eye” expectations of a concrete Olympic Park were replaced by golden wildflower meadows. Visitors to each venue reported them to be smooth, efficient and cheerful; as a nation, we collectively overflowed with pride. Even the most unenthusiastic spectator would have been hard-pushed not to have been caught up in the Olympic euphoria. It was epic.

We have plenty of “damp” proverbs within the English language, due to their origins in weather predictions for our sailors and farmers when their success and failure depended on it. There are fewer bright and sunny expressions of the “Olympic variety”. However, for visitors to London 2012, and spectators both at the sporting venues and in front of their TV’s this summer, I have one especially for you: The tans will fade, but the memories will last forever.

Every summer has a story; this year, the London 2012 Olympics was the British story.

The phrase ‘Shipshape and Bristol Fashion’ is due a revival!

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Rope on a shipThis is one of my favourite expressions. However, despite its charming historical origins in the West Country, we do not hear it often enough.

The Bristol Channel is funnel-shaped and has the second highest rise and fall of tides in the world. Bristol’s origins as a key trading port in the XVIII century were developed against these environmental factors, and an enviable reputation for standards of equipment and service for long voyages was founded. The Royal Naval ships, in particular, were sturdy and stout, and robust enough to avoid damage from being “beached” or “keeled over”. In turn, their on-board paraphernalia had to be stowed neatly, orderly and safely before setting sail.

The term “shipshape” refers to the neat order; “Bristol fashion” refers to the critical specifications that ships had to meet before entering Bristol Harbour. The phrase in its entirety means “neat, tidy and well-stowed”… lovely!

Wind forward three hundred years, and we have to ask ourselves what Bristol’s seafaring captains might have done before their blogs, newsletters and various marketing collateral were ready to set sail on the internet. Would our business and marketing materials have stood up to their pre-launch inspections? Would they have “signed-off” our grammar, spelling, punctuation, format and style as orderly stowed prior to departure?

Like Bristol’s naval captains, the proofreader arrives at the end of the writing process to check that the copy is robust, reliable and “ready to go”. The proofreader wears a different hat to the writer, and brings a different set of skills; he reads what he actually sees on the materials, making corrections where necessary, thereby giving the writer the confidence that the copy really “glistens”.

The term, “Shipshape and Bristol Fashion” is due a revival. With the current proliferation of blogs, reports, e-shots and newsletters being shared on the internet, presentation is everything. Let’s polish it up and use this phrase as a byword for proofreading our written copy prior to publication. The naval captains of old would have expected nothing less!