InterestingEtymology @IntEtymology

A page to celebrate the origin of words. Tweets are daily! Joined February 2016

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Gemma Hollman @GemmaHAuthor

3 years ago

So very excited that it is officially release day for The Queen and the Mistress: The Women of Edward III! I have waited so long to get this out there, and I really put my heart and soul into it. I sincerely hope you all enjoy reading about these two amazing women 💖👑

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Just History Posts @JustHistoryPost

4 years ago

5 years ago today Just History Posts was created! All this month I have some exciting things lined up but most importantly I have launched a special competition with a prize worth £60 - read here to find out how to enter! justhistoryposts.com/5-year-anniver… #blogs #history #competition

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Gemma Hollman @GemmaHAuthor

5 years ago

⭐️🎉 Today is the release day of Royal Witches in North America! The stories of four royal women, their lives intertwined by family and bound by persecution, unravel the history of witchcraft in fifteenth-century England: amazon.com/Royal-Witches-… #history #witchcraft #medieval

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The History Press @TheHistoryPress

6 years ago

Beat those January blues with the thrilling tales of power and witchcraft in medieval #England in #RoyalWitches! #medievaltwitter

Gemma Hollman @GemmaHAuthor

6 years ago

Beat those January blues with the thrilling tales of power and witchcraft in medieval #England in #RoyalWitches! #medievaltwitter https://t.co/8hIazLYg8g

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The History Press @TheHistoryPress

6 years ago

From mistress to duchess to sorceress, Eleanor Cobham, Duchess of #Gloucester's story reads like fiction - discover the truth this October in @GemmaHAuthor's #RoyalWitches: bit.ly/2Z0uNzQ #medievaltwitter #womeninhistory

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The History Press @TheHistoryPress

6 years ago

#DYK Joan of #Navarre, Queen consort of #England as wife of Henry IV, was accused of witchcraft and imprisoned in @leedscastleuk? Find out more from @GemmaHAuthor, author of #RoyalWitches (bit.ly/2Z0uNzQ), this Saturday 26 October! bit.ly/2Y3Vp72

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The History Press @TheHistoryPress

6 years ago

"My passion certainly lies with strong women in the medieval period." Historian @GemmaHAuthor chats to @tonyriches about her forthcoming book, #RoyalWitches: bit.ly/2Jm8UGc

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Haggard Hawks 🦅📚 Words | Language | Etymology @HaggardHawks

7 years ago

The phrase “always the bridesmaid, never the bride” was coined in an advert for Listerine mouthwash in 1925. ➡️ 📸 Instagram.Com/haggardhawks

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Susie Dent @susie_dent

7 years ago

Strange etymology of the day: ‘geek’ has gone from (very) bad to good. It’s a twist on an old dialect word ‘geck’, meaning ‘fool’. Some of the first geeks were freak show acts who bit the heads off live chickens. That sense of an extreme obsession eventually turned positive.

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Susie Dent @susie_dent

7 years ago

'Pamphlet' has had quite a journey. It began with a 12th century love poem whose hero was Pamphilus (from the Greek for 'beloved of all'). It became so popular, and was so widely distributed, that the name was attached to any kind of circulated booklet.

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InterestingEtymology @IntEtymology

7 years ago

#WOTD: PELOTON. Celebrating #CycleToWorkDay! The #Peloton is the compact group of cyclists in a road race. Originally from 18th Century French 'peleton', meaning 'platoon'; a small body of soldiers. This comes from 11th Century 'pelote'; ball or heap. #WordoftheDay #Platoon #Bike

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Haggard Hawks 🦅📚 Words | Language | Etymology @HaggardHawks

7 years ago

The EAVESDROP was originally the area around a house that would be covered by rainwater dripping off the roof. Because someone standing within the eavesdrop would be able to hear what was happening inside the house, the word came to be used to mean ‘to listen secretly’.

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InterestingEtymology @IntEtymology

7 years ago

#WOTD: POPPYCOCK. Meaning nonsense, this 1800s English colloquialism is from #Dutch 'pappekak', soft excrement, or 'poppekak': doll excrement. The phrase "fijn als gemalen poppekak" - “fine as powdered doll excrement" was used to describe an overzealous speaker. #WordOfTheDay

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InterestingEtymology @IntEtymology

7 years ago

#WOTD: FORLORN. From 12th Century Old English 'forloren', meaning disgraced. The phrase forlorn hope originally was not from forlorn, but from #Dutch verloren hoop; Skirmishers or lost troop. English misinterpretation of 'hope' gave rise to the new meaning. #WordOfTheDay #Forlorn