origin of ‘cloud-cuckoo-land’
a realm of fantasy, dreams or impractical notions—1856 as ‘cuckoo-cloud-land’—from the name of the city built by the birds in ‘The Birds’, by Aristophanes
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the curious origin of ‘pie’ (baked dish)
perhaps identical to ‘pie’ (‘magpie’)—variety of ingredients maybe associated with bird’s spotted appearance or its tendency to collect miscellaneous articles
Read Moremeaning and origin of ‘j’accuse’
1899—public accusation in response to a perceived injustice—from the title of an open letter (1898) by Émile Zola, condemning the imprisonment of Alfred Dreyfus
Read Morethe liturgical origin of ‘Quasimodo’
in full ‘Quasimodo Sunday’: the Sunday after Easter—from the opening words of the Latin introit for that day, ‘quasimodo geniti infantes’, ‘as newborn babies’
Read Moreoriginal meaning of ‘cretin’: ‘Christian’, ‘human being’
Swiss-French ‘crestin’ (= ‘Christian’): in certain valleys of the Alps, a mentally deficient, deformed person suffering from a congenital thyroid deficiency
Read More‘ladybird’: the Virgin Mary’s beetle
The ladybird was so named on account of its seven spots, which were popularly believed to symbolise the seven sorrows of the Virgin Mary.
Read Morethe changing identities of the butterfly
Since antiquity, European languages have variously named the butterfly, in particular by using sound reduplications expressive of its fluttering.
Read Morethe uncertain origin of the word ‘cockney’
originally ‘pampered child’, later ‘town-dweller regarded as affected or puny’—origin uncertain—probably not the same word as ‘cokeney’, literally ‘cock’s egg’
Read Moreorigin of the word ‘ado’
from ‘at do’ (meaning ‘to do’)—construction ‘to have’ + pronominal object (e.g. ‘much’) + ‘at do’ led to ‘ado’ reinterpreted as a noun qualified by an adjective
Read Moreorigin of the British phrase ‘—— rule(s) OK’
UK, 1971, in graffiti—preceded by a proper or common noun in the singular or plural; used to assert the pre-eminence of a specified person or thing
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