John Kelly @mashedradish.bsky.social · 01/12/2025But sometimes, I think it’s a surprise enough to come across a common word and learn that, for all its familiarity, we just don’t know where it comes from. Where to start? English has so many. But I have to begin with a textbook 'origin unknown': 150
John Kelly @mashedradish.bsky.social · 01/12/2025Day 1, Obscure Etymology Advent Calendar: dog Origin unknown. 3102
Dark Fright 🎃 (Mark Wright) @jmarkwrite.bsky.social · 06/12/2025Thirty years ago while taking high school German, I learned their word for dog was Hund. It made sense. I immediately thought of its cognate word in English: hound. But it didn’t take long to arrive at the question: wait, do why do we say dog for all canines and hound was narrow to certain breeds? 210
John Kelly @mashedradish.bsky.social · 01/12/2025Day 2, Obscure Etymology Advent Calendar: squander Origin unknown. 181
Alan Fisher @amfisher.bsky.social · 06/12/2025Dog; God in reverse; the opposite of God. (Honestly, I'm really surprised there's no etymology for this.) 020
