Synonym Etymologies Q

Continuing the look at synonyms through the eyes of the etymologist, this time it is the letter Q and quiet. Coming to English from Old French quiete, itself from Latin quies, and Proto-Indo-European kweie and all with the same meaning as the modern word.

Silent is from the Latin silentem>, but both originally meant 'still, calm, quiet', and not used in the sense of 'without a sound' until around 1580.

Hush is first seen as Middle English huisht with the same meaning. Difficult to know just how this word developed, if it could indeed be considered a word in earliest times, for it seems to have developed as being the sound most easily produced with a minimum of effort. Interesting to note the original hush-puppy is found in 1899 and was a deep fried ball of cornmeal batter.

Mute is from Old French muet 'dumb, mute' and from Latin mutus with the same meaning and related to Greek myein 'to be shut' (as on the mouth).

Dumb is from Proto-Germanic dumbaz 'dumb, dull' and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European dheu 'dust, mist, vapour, smoke'. Note the final 'b' has probably been silent since the 13th century.

Low has been used in this sense since around 1300, it comes from the Proto-Indo-European root legh 'to lie down'.

Muffle in the sense of deadening sound is first recorded in 1761, probably because it referred to muffling the sound of oars using a similar material to that used in the Old French moufle 'thick glove, mitten'.

Faint is used in the sense of 'weak', and comes from the Proto-Indo-European dheigh 'to form, build'.

Confidential is from 'confidence', where the prefix com- precedes the Lain fidere 'to trust', itself from Proto-Indo-European bheidh 'to trust'.

Secret takes two Latin elements: se 'without, apart' and cernere 'to separate' - thus not to tell or impart.

Discreet is very similar to 'secret', with dis 'off, away' preceding cernere.

Grenada Place Names Explained

Having blogged samples of my books on English place names and also examined the etymologies of the nations of the world and their respective capitals I thought it time I cast my net a little wider. As English place names share some links to other tongues it would be interesting to see if any of the elements contributing to our place names could be found elsewhere. Continuing an alphabetical tour of the world and a look at the largest of Grenada's settlements. Note many of these are transferred names from colonial days and, while they are hardly relevant in Grenada, the name is nevertheless still defined as are those which are clearly simply descriptions of the place and, for anyone who speaks even a smattering of French, self-explanatory - although it is not always easy to see why the name was coined.

Dunfermline is a name taken from the Scottish town, where the origin is disputed. If this represents Gaelic dun then this probably refers to the prominent rocky outcrop, here with the addition of two river names - the Tower Burn and the Lyne Burn.

Gouyave was named by the French owing to its proliferation of guava trees. Previously this had been Charlotte Town after Queen Charlotte, wife and consort of King George III.

Grenville is named after former British prime minister George Grenville, and is also known by its former French name of La Baye.

St George's is the capital and renamed by the new administration in 1763 and clearly referring to the patron saint of England. However the earlier name of Fort George had been named after King George III.

Sauters is undoubtedly the best name on the island, although it probably also qualifies as the most unfortunate. When the French held this island the last remaining Carib people leapt to their deaths from the 40-metre high cliff now known as Carib Leap, seemingly a better proposition than living under French rule. The town became known as sauters. as this is the French for 'jumpers'.

Apres Tout translates literally as 'after all'.

Belmont is 'the beautiful mount'.

Bonaire means, quite simply, 'good air'.

Crochu is French meaning 'hooked'.

Grand Roy is understood as 'great king'.

L'Anse Aux Epines translates as 'prickly or thorny bay'.

La Fortune really does mean 'fortune'.

La Mode translates as 'fashion'.

La Sagesse means simply 'wisdom'.

La Tante means 'the aunt'.

Morne Fendue describes the 'cracked mountain'.

Morne Jaloux Ridge was named as 'the jealous mountain'.

Morne Longue comes from 'the long mountain'.

Morne Tranquille is clearly 'the quiet mountain'.

Note the spellings of the places are English as the piece is written in English.