Synonym Etymologies N

Continuing the look at synonyms through the eyes of the etymologist, this time it is the letter N and new. As a simple and monosyllabic word, 'new' has hardly changed since Proto-Indo-European newo and with the same meaning. That we find other Germanic languages with very similar words: Old Saxon niwi, Old Frisian nie, Middle Dutch niuwe, Old High German niiwl and Danish (and Swedish) ny is telling, as are the non-Germanic languages with similar words, such as: Sanskrit navah, Persian nau, Hittite newash, Greek neos, Lithuanian naujas, Old Church Slavonic novu, Russian novyi, Latin novus, Old Irish nue, and Welsh newydd. The point is, with it being common to so many languages, it can not have ever meant anything else and must be ancient in the extreme. For the same reason that the word is so ancient, synonyms of 'new' are rarely needed. Indeed many of the following are only synonyms due to modern usage.

Fresh has, for most of its history, simply been used to refer to food, albeit not as we would think today but in the sense of 'not salted' - salting being the method of preservation for much of human history. Not until the 14th century did it come into use as a synonym for 'new' and it's roots are unclear, even though it is common to most Latin and Germanic languages.

Novel is used in this sense, at least since the 15th century, at least a century before it was used as a noun. Interestingly, the word 'novel' is from 'novella', itself a Latin term meaning 'new things'.

Original is clearly from 'origin', and while it seems odd to be talking of the origins of the word 'origin', he goes. This is from Latin originem. 'a rise, commencement, source, descent', and can betraced to the Proto-Indo-European heri 'to rise'.

Contemporary is a complex word, which is a good indication it is comparatively modern. Thus we can get rid oc the first syllable, leaving the root 'temporal', itself from Proto-Indo-European temp-os 'stretched' and ten 'to stretch', both used in the sense of 'time'.

Upgraded comes from 'up' added to 'grade', itself a word which has meant 'to step, walk' for much of its existence and found in Latin gradus and Proto-Indo-European ghredh.

Recent comes from the Latin recentem meaning 'fresh, young' as much as 'new'. It can also be seen in Sanskrit kanina 'young'. Old Irish cetu 'first', and Breton kent 'earlier'.

Current in the 'contemporary' sense is unknown prior to around 1600. It came from the noun, describing movement and, as an adjective, is used in the sense of 'keeping up with the times'. The noun comes from Proto-Indo-European kers 'to run'.

Latest, the superlative of 'late', is first seen in 1520 and used to mean 'the last in order'. The word 'late' has an odd history, for the Old English laet meant 'slow, sluggish, lax', Old Norse latr 'lazy', Gothic lats 'weary', and all from Proto-Indo-European le 'to let go'.

Mint - and I could not resist including a little modern slang. Little surprise to find it came to be used in this sense from the idea of a freshly-minted coin. The place where a coin is produced, the 'mint', is derived from the same source as the word 'money' - Latin moneta, first seen in English in mynet, the Old English word meaning 'coin, money'.

Tools of the Historical Trade

Recent blog posts have covered the street names and occupational surnames which may or may not prove of interest to authors of historical stories. It occurred to me how it might prove useful to look at some of the tools and terminology used by those in those occupations. That many were used in agriculture comes as no surprise as the vast majority worked the land.

ARTIFICIAL LEECH – as it suggests this blood-letting tool of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries mimicked the natural blood sucker after which it was named. It resembled a bicycle pump with one end where rotating blades with cut into the patient’s flesh and enable the blood to be drawn into the tube.

ASTROLABE – a navigational aid and a remarkably intricate piece of equipment for its day – those from the seventeenth century particularly. Useless during the day, they showed position by lining the instrument up with the stars.

BREAST PLOUGH – an early implement and one with a most misleading name, it is really a broad spade with a broad handle which pressed against the body of the user which cut a narrow swathe across the field, removing the top layer of stubble, weeds, brushwood, etc. This was then burned slowly to produce an ash which was then spread back on the field as a fertiliser. The implement was certainly available by the end of the sixteenth century, and still used in the Cotswolds in the 1930s, although it would seem to be in use much earlier and could well have been seen before the Romans arrived. Note there many different names for this item depending upon location.

BURN-BAITING – the process of using a breast plough and burning that removed.

CHAFF CUTTER – a curved blade was employed to chop the stubble from the crops into smaller pieces. The stalks were enclosed in a rectangular box on legs, both ends of the box were missing so the chaff could be slid along to protrude from chaff box and sliced through. An experienced cutter could make fifteen cuts per minute, less able workers would doubtless have at least scars to show their ineptitude. Chaff was cut into smaller pieces to mix in with the animal feed to ensure nothing went to waste, left whole the creatures could leave this in favour of the tastier morsels. Various models existed from the most basic idea in the sixteenth century to spring-loaded versions by the middle of the nineteenth century.

CROSS STAFF – a navigational aid resembling a television aerial but with cross pieces of differing lengths. Held up to horizon in the direction of the sun or pole star would be a guide to the vessel’s latitude. Looking directly at the sun caused blindness in a number of users.

DENTCHERING – the process of using a breast plough.

EMMET-IRON – another name for a breast plough and common to the south east of England, so-named because it knocked down ant hills and emmet is an early name for the ant (and in current use as a Cornish word for a tourist).

GROZIER – glaziers used lead to hold the smaller panels of glass in a larger pane, the length of lead being trimmed with a grozier.

HUMMELLER – used to remove the beard from the barley after threshing, it resembled a rake but with longer tines and a second piece along the ends to form a grill. Combed through the barley it would remove the unwanted beard.

LATHERKIN – when glaziers used lead to hold together the various glass panes in a larger window, the malleable lead was smoothed out with a latherkin.

LEY – nothing to do with track ways or lines of energies, this ‘ley’ is an alternative northern term for a scythe.

MOUTH GAG – not what it seems, this late nineteenth century implement resembled a large wooden tapering thumb screw which would be placed in the patient’s mouth when they were under to keep the mouth and the airway open.

POSSER – an alternative name for the ‘dolly’ used on wash days. When clothes were washed in a copper boiler the only means of agitating the clothes was with a wooden post with a handle which was twisted by hand to rotate the clothes.

SALVING – salve is a mixture of butter and tar which, when rubbed on to the skin of the sheep in autumn protected them from pests and parasites through the winter when the long fleece provided a welcome home for them. The process ended when the sheep dip proved to be at least as effective at under a quarter of the cost.

SEED FIDDLER – a bag containing the seed to be sowed was suspended by a shoulder strap. A rotating disc allowed the seed to be distributed from beneath the bag and was sent spinning by a bow-like action back and forth by the operator, hence the name ‘fiddler’. Used by the nineteenth century.

SHAUL – a shallow scoop of wood, used for winnowing, While the chaff would be blown away in the breeze the heavier seeds would drop back into the shaul.

SPECULUM – any of various instruments used over many years and used to open any number of body cavities to give a better view. By the look of it they got the idea from the old shoe stretcher, or perhaps the reverse was the case.

TOBACCO SMOKE ENEMA – pretty obvious from the name what it is, but just why mini-bellows blowing smoke up the patient’s backside in the late eighteenth century was thought to help breathing problems is mystifying. Unless everyone in the eighteenth century talked through their ……. no, that can’t possibly have been the case.

TREPANNING – possibly still known as a medical treatment whereby holes are drilled in the skull to cure what were seen as problems caused by demons but were actually insanity, epilepsy, or simply a fractured skull.

I would welcome any suggestions for themes or subjects, or even specific words to examine the origins, meanings and etymologies. I’d be delighted to hear from you.

Family Business

Following on from last week’s examination of some of the most common street names found in England, for the historical novelist it is as important to have names which fit the character as it is to have an address which is suitable for the era. As such here is a selection of surnames which may or may not inspire an idea or two – incidentally if any of these do give the writer an idea I’d be fascinated to hear about it.

Surnames come from four basic areas: place names, forenames, trades, and a smattering of nicknames. This blog covers the subject of place names quite regularly and, if you require a place name for a specific county for a character, there are some twenty books of mine out there which will give many suggestions. Christian names speak for themselves with examples such as Richardson or Robinson. Trades may be less obvious, although there is always the exception to the rule and Smith, the most common of English surnames, referring to a metalworker. Note this does not only mean a blacksmith, although this is the most common source, but also tinsmith, coppersmith, silversmith and goldsmith. The following is a list of trades which have developed into surnames – I have omitted the most obvious such as Miller, Taylor, Carter, Shepherd, etc., and list these in alphabetical order (only so I don’t duplicate any).

Arkwright – a maker of arks, which at the time would refer to large wooden chests

Bailey – a bailiff and an important official

Barker – not a market seller but one who sold bark used in the tanning of leather

Baxter – is a female baker, also Whitbread as one who produced only white bread and thus for the rich

Bond – yes James’ ancestors were serfs or bondsmen

Brewer – is obvious but included as the female version was Brewster

Chambers – one who managed the private chambers of a man of rank

Chapman – sold goods at a market

Cooper – a maker of barrels

Coward – he may or may not not be brave but he was named for being a cow herd

Dempster – a judge

Dyer – worked in cloth

Farmer – not the obvious, which is comparatively modern, but from fermier or tax collector

Fletcher – fairly well known as the man who made arrow shafts and flights for same

Fowler – trapped birds for the table

Frobisher – a polisher of metal, such as the swords and armour of knights

Fuller – like Walker a method of washing cloth

Granger – was the original farmer

Hawker – a market seller

Hooper – produced the hoops which held the wooden panels of the barrels

Lister – simply another name for a dyer

Lorimer – one who made horse-riding equipment, sometimes said to be just stirrups

Mercer – traded in the finest cloth

Napier – had a selection of cloths used to dry those who had just used a fingerbowl

Parsons – servant of a parson or clergyman

Roper – made ropes

Sawyer – produced logs

Spencer – literally dispensed goods from the stores

Stoddard – a corruption of stot herd, a stot being a young ox

Turner – operated a lathe working wood

Vickers – the servant of a clergyman

Walker – trod the cloth to wash out impurities before it was stretched on a frame to dry

Waterman – rowed a boat

Yates – was a gatekeeper

We should also include a selection of nicknames. Although these are not exactly what we would see as nicknames today. These include Strong, Armstrong, Small, Long, etc which speak for themselves.

Abbot – more likely to be a reference to one seen as arrogant rather than a holder of the office

Bishop – again one seen as arrogant more often than a holder of the office

Blunt – one with blonde hair

Bragg – nothing to do with boasting but an old synonym for bold

Crippen – would have been known for his curly hair

Darwin – literally ‘dear one’ a friend

Golightly – the way they walked

King – once more more likely to be a reference to one seen as arrogant than a holder of the office

Lord – and yet another example of an arrogant individual rather than a lord or one who worked for same

Moody – as with Bragg not what is seems but from modig and another word meaning bold

Pollard – a naturally bald man

Prince – and yet another for the arrogant rather than a holder of the office

Russell – one with red hair

Tait – someone who was cheerful

Todd – is an alternative name for a fox and could have described a cunning individual

Unwin – an unfriendly individual

I would welcome any suggestions for themes or subjects, or even specific words to examine the origins, meanings and etymologies. I’d be delighted to hear from you.