# Your favorite unexpected etymology **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 22, 2013, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641 "2013-06-22T17:12:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/81 "2013-06-25T12:59:49Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > **Bistro** comes from the Russian **Bystro** (быстро) which means “quickly”. The Russians have a wonderful verb, _syozhitsya_ (съёжиться), meaning to shrink down and curl up to make oneself inconspicuous. It’s derived from the noun _yozhe_ (ёж), meaning “hedgehog.” ---
**Author:** ![YourAdHere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/65b543/32.png) [@YourAdHere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YourAdHere)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/82 "2013-06-25T13:12:25Z")
As an aside, the Romans themselves liked to study etymology, but their methods were "less than scientific. " Some of their (supposed ) etymologies are: Britannia - From “Brutus” - stupid , because of a supposed characteristic of the natives. Gallia - Gaul is so called from the pale complexion of it’s inhabitants (“gala” meaning “milk” in Greek ). The Franci were later notorious for breaking (frango, frangere, fregi, fractus) their oaths. Germania - the Germans had huge (immanis, -e) bodies and were thus thought to breed (germinare ) prolifically. Source “Classical Latin: An Introductory Course” JC McKeown. The book actually has a ton of interesting ones like that. Yes, the author acknowledges that they are wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/83 "2013-06-25T13:52:04Z")
Tempura, a popular Japanese snack consisting of vegetables coated in crispy batter and then fried in oil, was actually introduced by Portuguese missionaries in Nagasaki over four hundred years ago. The name comes from the Latin word for time, _tempora_, which I’ve read was used colloquially to refer to meatless Fridays–hence the vegetables. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/84 "2013-06-25T14:02:09Z")
Cajuns and their French background come from eastern Canada by way of [The Great Expulsion.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Expulsion) That area (eastern Canada) was home to a French colony called Acadia (French: Acadie). The French settlers there were called Acadian - or in French, “Acadien.” If you pronounce “Acadienne” with a French accent/cadence, and give it a bit of time, eventually you end up with “Cajun.” ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/85 "2013-06-25T14:17:13Z")
> [@RobDog](#): > > Hmm. Does that have any relationship to legendary legendary French farter Le Petomane? Both words derive from “pet,” meaning “fart.” ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2013, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/86 "2013-06-25T20:42:25Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > Both words derive from “pet,” meaning “fart.” Interesting. The Russian word is _perdet’_ (пердеть), which is quite rude; a milder variant is _pukat’_ (пукать). The derivatives _perdun_ and _pukalka_ (пердун and пукалка) mean exactly the same things they do in English: old fart (geezer) and little fart (toddler). ---
**Author:** ![rhysf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f14d63/32.png) [@rhysf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rhysf)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/87 "2013-06-26T02:29:41Z")
Marzipan is derived from the Arabic for ‘the king who sits still’, a mocking reference to images of a seated Christ on European coins that made their way to the middle east. The term was first applied to the coins, then the boxes they were stored in and finally the contents of the boxes later on. Tawdry is a contraction of St Audrey’s lace, St Audrey having died from throat cancer believing it to be God’s punishment for her one vanity - wearing expensive scarves. Lace scarves were sold at an annual fair in her honour but gradually declined in quality, altering the original meaning of tawdry from ‘refined’ to ‘crappy.’ Avocado is from the Nahuatl word for testicle. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/88 "2013-06-26T04:41:52Z")
For anyone unfortunate enough to NOT subscribe to AWAD: Gossamer: From goose + summer. The term is believed to have originated as a name for late autumn when geese are in season and then transferred to cobwebs seen around that time of the year. Earliest documented use: 1325. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/89 "2013-06-26T04:47:07Z")
> [@rhysf](#): > > Avocado is from the Nahuatl word for testicle. Orchid is from the Greek word for the same thing. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/90 "2013-06-26T04:50:12Z")
> [@Koxinga](#): > > Tempura, a popular Japanese snack consisting of vegetables coated in crispy batter and then fried in oil, was actually introduced by Portuguese missionaries in Nagasaki over four hundred years ago. The name comes from the Latin word for time, _tempora_, which I’ve read was used colloquially to refer to meatless Fridays–hence the vegetables. I’m guessing that “bao” – Cantonese for a bun (filled with, say, sweet minced pork) – comes from the Portuguese word for bread. Am I right? (I do know that the Vietnamese dish “pho” comes from French “feu,” fire, as in “pot au feu.”) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/91 "2013-06-26T05:20:49Z")
According to one etymology, _infantry_ is derived from the Latin word _infantem_ for youth. It referred to newly recruited soldiers who were not yet experienced enough to serve in the cavalry. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/92 "2013-06-26T05:49:21Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > According to one etymology, _infantry_ is derived from the Latin word _infantem_ for youth. It referred to newly recruited soldiers who were not yet experienced enough to serve in the cavalry. And, in turn, “infant” means “doesn’t (yet) talk.” In-fans = not talking (“fari” is one of those Latin verbs with the weird infinitives and only a few forms.) ---
**Author:** ![phouka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c5a1d2/32.png) [@phouka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phouka)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/93 "2013-06-26T13:45:46Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > Me? I like “disaster,” which comes from the italian/latin words for “bad stars,” arising from a time when people thought the stars controlled their destinies. I was under the impression that it mainly referred to comets, which were considered omens of extremely ill aspect. My current favorite etymology is one I stumbled onto while chasing the Elephant’s Child through Wikipedia. Most everyone knows the tip of the penis is called the glans. Did you know that’s from the Latin _glans_ which means “acorn”? Which, when you think about the approximate shape makes sense. _Glans_ or the plural, _glandes_, was also used to describe the ammunition used when using a sling. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/94 "2013-06-26T14:33:04Z")
LSD is the abbreviation for “lysergic acid diethylamide.” But it’s LSD instead of LAD because the former comes from the German name for it, Lyserg Säure Diäthylamid. So, although they don’t look like it at first, the English words “acid” and “sour” are linguistic cognates. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/95 "2013-06-26T14:42:11Z")
> [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](#): > > LSD is the abbreviation for “lysergic acid diethylamide.” But it’s LSD instead of LAD because the former comes from the German name for it, Lyserg Säure Diäthylamid. So, although they don’t look like it at first, the English words “acid” and “sour” are linguistic cognates. I don’t think “cognate” is the word you mean, but you make a good point. “Sour” in Greek is “oxy-.” Hence, “oxygen” in German is a word that looks and sounds just like the English “sour stuff.” And there’s a common northern-climes weed/small flower with a tart-tasting stem – its botanical name is “Oxalis.” ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/96 "2013-06-26T14:54:03Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > I don’t think “cognate” is the word you mean, but you make a good point. > > “Sour” in Greek is “oxy-.” Hence, “oxygen” in German is a word that looks and sounds just like the English “sour stuff.” And there’s a common northern-climes weed/small flower with a tart-tasting stem – its botanical name is “Oxalis.” This reference to “sourstuff” reminds me of Poul Anderson’s “Uncleftish Beholding” - a description of atomic (“Uncleftish”) theory (“Beholding”) with all those naughty Greek and Latin derived words replaced with their Germanic equivalents. Text is here: [Redirecting to Google Groups](https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups=#!msg/alt.language.artificial/ZL4e3fD7eW0/_7p8bKwLJWkJ) ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/97 "2013-06-26T15:15:24Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > The elements erbium, terbium, ytterbium, and yttrium are all named after the town of Ytterby, Sweden, which is the location of the quarry where they were all discovered. I wouldn’t call it a town, though. In the same vein the element holmium, that was found in the same quarry, is named after Stockholm. [The quarry from above.](http://goo.gl/maps/Cbrn6) ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/98 "2013-06-26T15:15:44Z")
“flu” is short for “influenza”, which is Italian for “influence”, because the illness was due to the influence of the stars (astrology). I also like the “recombobulation area” just past security in the Milwaukee airport: discombobulated is a word made up out of whole cloth some two centuries ago. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/99 "2013-06-26T15:42:42Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Orchid is from the Greek word for the same thing. And the medical term “orchidectomy” is the surgical removal of the testicles. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2013, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641/100 "2013-06-26T15:47:57Z")
> [@For You](#): > > “flu” is short for “influenza”, which is Italian for “influence”, because the illness was due to the influence of the stars (astrology).. Whereas “malaria” was thought to be caused by _bad air_. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-unexpected-etymology/661641.md?page=6)