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Wiktionary says: Pprobably from Old English buttuc (“end; end piece”; also, “short piece of land”). I wonder how "to expel" ends up being "a short piece of lan

Wiktionary says: Pprobably from Old English buttuc (“end; end piece”; also, “short piece of land”). I wonder how "to expel" ends up being "a short piece of land"...

mikro2nd 5y ago
Been wondering lately how the word "fast" means "moving quickly" and also "not moving at all" (as in "hold fast" and also the root of "fasten"). (Also: "refrain from eating".)
- throwaway894345 5y ago
  Per the venerable etymonline.com: > The meaning "quickly, swiftly, rapidly" was perhaps in Old English, certainly by c. 1200, probably from or developed under influence of Old Norse fast "firmly, fast." This sense developed, apparently in Scandinavian, from that of "firmly, strongly, vigorously" (to run hard means the same as to run fast; also compare fast asleep, also compare Old Norse drekka fast "to drink hard," telja fast "to give (someone) a severe lesson"). Or perhaps from the notion of a runner who "sticks" close to whatever he is chasing (compare Old Danish fast "much, swiftly, at once, near to, almost," and sense evolution of German fix "fast, fixed; fast, quick, nimble," from Latin fixus). The expression fast by "near, close, beside" also is said to be from Scandinavian. To fast talk someone (v.) is recorded by 1946. > "act of fasting," late Old English fæsten "voluntary abstinence from food and drink or from certain kinds of food," especially, but not necessarily, as a religious duty; either from the verb in Old English or from Old Norse fasta "a fast, fasting, season for fasting," from a Proto-Germanic noun formed from the verbal root of fast (v.). In earlier Old English fæsten meant "fortress, cloister, enclosure, prison."
jmkb 5y ago
My favorite piece-of-land word is "gore," which is either a triangular parcel formed where roads intersect at an acute angle, or a narrow strip of land (usually also an acute triangle) of uncertain ownership resulting from inaccurate surveying. It's derived from the Old English word for spear, which also came to mean stab, and a stab wound, and eventually blood-n-guts in general.
- acheron 5y ago
  Yep. Old English word for spear was "gar". One vegetable was related to the leek, but they described the clove as spear-shaped: the gar-leek. https://www.etymonline.com/word/garlic https://www.etymonline.com/word/garlic
  - throwaway894345 5y ago
    People in this thread might be interested in the History of English Podcast. I highly recommend it if you're interested in etymology and/or history: https://historyofenglishpodcast.com https://historyofenglishpodcast.com
  - mellavora 5y ago
    And interestingly enough, the Swedish word for the fish which is called "pike" in English is "gär". Lots of Nordic words in old English.
    - kjs3 5y ago
      Also interesting is we (US, at least) have a fish called a 'gar' that looks similar to a pike, but isn't technically. Pike are family Esocidae and gar are family Lepisosteidae.
    - bivargen 5y ago
      No, it’s not, the fish is called ”gädda”. The swedish cognate to gar would be ger, which has the same meaning of acute angle/point.
  - jmkb 5y ago
    Hah. I assume the English were looking at the budding shoot (aka "garlic scape" [0]) when they named it, whereas the Germans were looking at the knobby root (Knoblauch = knob leek). [0] https://ediblejersey.ediblecommunities.com/recipes/garlic-scapes https://ediblejersey.ediblecommunities.com/recipes/garlic-sc...

Wiktionary says: Pprobably from Old English buttuc (“end; end piece”; also, “short piece of land”). I wonder how "to expel" ends up being "a short piece of land"...

mikro2nd 5y ago

Been wondering lately how the word "fast" means "moving quickly" and also "not moving at all" (as in "hold fast" and also the root of "fasten"). (Also: "refrain from eating".)

throwaway894345 5y ago
Per the venerable etymonline.com: > The meaning "quickly, swiftly, rapidly" was perhaps in Old English, certainly by c. 1200, probably from or developed under influence of Old Norse fast "firmly, fast." This sense developed, apparently in Scandinavian, from that of "firmly, strongly, vigorously" (to run hard means the same as to run fast; also compare fast asleep, also compare Old Norse drekka fast "to drink hard," telja fast "to give (someone) a severe lesson"). Or perhaps from the notion of a runner who "sticks" close to whatever he is chasing (compare Old Danish fast "much, swiftly, at once, near to, almost," and sense evolution of German fix "fast, fixed; fast, quick, nimble," from Latin fixus). The expression fast by "near, close, beside" also is said to be from Scandinavian. To fast talk someone (v.) is recorded by 1946. > "act of fasting," late Old English fæsten "voluntary abstinence from food and drink or from certain kinds of food," especially, but not necessarily, as a religious duty; either from the verb in Old English or from Old Norse fasta "a fast, fasting, season for fasting," from a Proto-Germanic noun formed from the verbal root of fast (v.). In earlier Old English fæsten meant "fortress, cloister, enclosure, prison."

jmkb 5y ago

My favorite piece-of-land word is "gore," which is either a triangular parcel formed where roads intersect at an acute angle, or a narrow strip of land (usually also an acute triangle) of uncertain ownership resulting from inaccurate surveying. It's derived from the Old English word for spear, which also came to mean stab, and a stab wound, and eventually blood-n-guts in general.

acheron 5y ago
Yep. Old English word for spear was "gar". One vegetable was related to the leek, but they described the clove as spear-shaped: the gar-leek. https://www.etymonline.com/word/garlic https://www.etymonline.com/word/garlic
- throwaway894345 5y ago
  People in this thread might be interested in the History of English Podcast. I highly recommend it if you're interested in etymology and/or history: https://historyofenglishpodcast.com https://historyofenglishpodcast.com
- mellavora 5y ago
  And interestingly enough, the Swedish word for the fish which is called "pike" in English is "gär". Lots of Nordic words in old English.
  - kjs3 5y ago
    Also interesting is we (US, at least) have a fish called a 'gar' that looks similar to a pike, but isn't technically. Pike are family Esocidae and gar are family Lepisosteidae.
  - bivargen 5y ago
    No, it’s not, the fish is called ”gädda”. The swedish cognate to gar would be ger, which has the same meaning of acute angle/point.
- jmkb 5y ago
  Hah. I assume the English were looking at the budding shoot (aka "garlic scape" [0]) when they named it, whereas the Germans were looking at the knobby root (Knoblauch = knob leek). [0] https://ediblejersey.ediblecommunities.com/recipes/garlic-scapes https://ediblejersey.ediblecommunities.com/recipes/garlic-sc...