Biology's Etymology

A few will be aware I have been known to speak on various subjects over the years. Fundamentally these all revolve around my favourite subject of etymology. Have always enjoyed bringing this fascinating subject to others. It’s not for me to say whether the audiences have, although many have asked me to return.

Thought it might be worthwhile sharing a snippet or two from these etymological presentations, continuing with Biology’s Etymology. Whether it is when watching, listening or reading that medical drama or a visit to the doctor or hospital, the terminology used can be baffling in the extreme. That they know what they are talking about is all we need to know, for that is not what this talk is about. Here we are looking at the terms used by the majority, those without a medical grounding. This talk examines the parts of the body through the names with which we are so familiar. Who first thought of the term 'head', 'foot', 'finger', 'muscle', 'bone'? Did the heart become known as such because it was seen as central to life, or did this develop the other way around? And what about ailments and diseases? Were chickens really the inspiration of 'chickenpox'? And who thought 'chilblains' an apt description of the ailment? An explanation of where these terms originated, how they developed and why they remain commonplace today. Many of the answers are surprising and more than a few amusing. There is also the opportunity to ask specific examples, especially for those who need to know the origins of those parts not included in the talk. There is a PowerPoint presentation to accompany this talk if required.

Chest – was never used for the thorax until the sixteenth century, prior to that both males and females had a breast (hence why we have a breastbone and armour a breastplate). The term chest came from Old English cest meaning ‘box, casket’, a suggestion the rib cage was a box containing a number of vital organs.

Finger – a Germanic word which can be traced to Proto-Indo-European penkwe meaning ‘five’ and for obvious reasons as there are five digits (the thumb was considered a finger until later).

Spleen – has been known since ancient times, where Proto-Indo-European splegh had the same meaning. Now today we know the spleen’s functions include the control of components of the blood such as platelets and red and blood cells. Traditionally this organ was held to contain an individual’s ill feelings, misery, bad tempers – hence we hear how one is ‘venting their spleen’.

Whooping cough – is an onomatopoeic name referring to its symptoms. Correctly it is called pertussis and coined in the 17th century as Latin per tussis means ‘persistent cough’. My grandmother always used the term chincough which, almost 50 years later, I discovered was Staffordshire dialect for whopping cough – although this doesn’t explain why my grandmother always warned us that sitting on a cold wall could give ‘chincough in your bottom’.

Buttock – most often seen in the plural, actually comes from the original ‘butt’. While this may be seen as an American term, it actually is a Tudor English term which in turn came from Germanic languages. It is not difficult to see why the rifle butt has the same origin as the rear end, although not used as such before the 14th century, and originally referred to a small piece of land (in Dutch) and as simply ‘short’ in Old Norse.

If you think you know someone who would like to hear me speak on this subject, drop me a line.