Annie's Origin of Words and Phrases
“Go the Extra Mile”
#etymology, #wordorigins, #linguistics, #languagehistory, #wordnerd

Annie's Origin of Words and Phrases
"His Name is Mud"
#etymology, #wordorigins, #linguistics, #languagehistory, #wordnerd

America's first newspaper dropped 334 years ago today. Publick Occurrences Both Forreign and Domestick lasted exactly one issue before authorities shut it down. Press freedom takes time.

#languagehistory #languagelovers #didyouknow #worldlanguages #languageisculture

Annie's Origin of Words and Phrases
"Paint the Town Red"
#etymology, #wordorigins, #linguistics, #languagehistory, #wordnerd

Finnish theatre just got a second act. Health Cobblers premiered in Oulu 1875, and yes, that's a real play title in a real language.

#languagehistory #languages #languagelovers #worldlanguages #didyouknow

Ape-ricot or app-ricot? It's both. And I’m not sure how we got here.

"Apricot" circled the Mediterranean, turned P to B and back, and added an Arabic definite article. And yet none of that explains the different pronunciations.

#etymology #linguistics #languagehistory #pronunciation #educational

2,000 years of words, finally shared. On this day in 1991, the Dead Sea Scrolls opened to everyone. Some of humanity's oldest texts, in ancient Hebrew and Aramaic, no longer locked away.

#languagehistory #languagelover #didyouknow #languages #languageisculture

September 20, 1954: The Moomin comics landed in London and went global. A Finnish masterpiece that proved stories in two languages hit different.

#languagehistory #multilingual #languagelovers #worldlanguages #didyouknow

Annie's Origin of Words and Phrases
"Mad as a Hatter"
#etymology, #wordorigins, #linguistics, #languagehistory, #wordnerd

🧵 4/4

It is a lovely reminder that language may have evolved not simply because humans needed to exchange information, but because we wanted to share experiences, imagine together & make meaning with other people.

#langsky #linguistics #languagehistory #language

🧵 3/4

The article even draws a line from prehistoric fireside storytelling to today’s news & social media, where memorable stories still thrive through emotion, surprise & human interest.

#langsky #linguistics #languagehistory #language

🧵 2/4

The researchers argue that gathering around fires after dark may have created new pressure for communication that could travel beyond the visual channel, helping spoken language become increasingly important while gesture remained alongside it.

#langsky #linguistics #languagehistory

🧵 1/4

One prominent account suggests that early human communication may have relied heavily on gesture, much like the gestural systems seen in other apes.

But gesture has an obvious limitation: you need to be able to see it.

#langsky #linguistics #languagehistory #language

Have you ever heard of the letter "thorn"? Here's an article I wrote about it, and why everyone is pronouncing “Ye" wrong (not that Ye - I mean the one in "Ye Olde Tea Shoppe”).

#EnglishLanguage #LanguageHistory #WordNerd

wordsmarts.com/old-english-...

September 16, 1994: Ireland's voices returned to the airwaves. After six years of silence, Sinn Féin could finally speak on British radio. Language as power. Language as freedom.

#languagehistory #languageisculture #globalcommunication #languagelovers #didyouknow

September 15, 1915: Chen Duxiu launched New Youth magazine and changed how Chinese people could write. Turns out, letting people use the language they actually speak? Revolutionary.

#languagehistory #linguistics #languagelovers #didyouknow #multilingo

Annie's Origin of Words and Phrases
"Straight From the Horse's Mouth"
#etymology, #wordorigins, #linguistics, #languagehistory, #wordnerd

September 14, 1814: Francis Scott Key watched Fort McHenry survive the night and wrote a poem that became a anthem. One man, one flag, one language that still moves millions.

#languagehistory #languagelovers #languagefacts #worldlanguages #languageisculture

🧵 3/4

Coined in the 1920s, it reflected a particular period in which white Baptist & Methodist institutions held considerable cultural & political power.

#langsky #language #linguistics #etymology #languagehistory

🧵 2/4

But this fascinating historical analysis by John Hayes asks whether the term still accurately describes the region.

#langsky #language #linguistics #etymology #languagehistory