Sherlock Holmes was modeled after a real person, Dr. Joseph Bell, a famous surgeon and lecturer of author A Conan Doyle’s time. Dr. Bell taught his medical students Continue reading The Real Sherlock Holmes
Category: Language
The Word “Boredom”
The word “boredom” made it’s very first appearance in a book by Charles Dickens in 1852.
English Letters
The letter Q is from the old word for monkey – see the tail? The letter H is from fence, and M probably represented water (waves).
The Word “Quiz”
Where did the word quiz come from? It was made up by a theater manager in Ireland who developed his claim to immortality by running around one night writing quiz as graffiti all over Dublin. The next day, everyone was asking everyone else, “What does ‘quiz’ mean?”
Hitler and Time Magazine
Time Magazine listed Adolf Hitler as “Man of the Year for 1938.”
Hitler and Bricks
When Adolf Hitler saw a pile of bricks near the church of St. Matthew in Munich, Germany, he said, “That pile of stones will have to be removed.” Someone misunderstood him, thinking he was referring to the whole church. The church was demolished.
See the worst of everything: The Worst
Chevy Novas
What’s in a name?
Chevrolet could not sell Novas in South America. Upon looking into the matter, their advertising department discovered that Nova is “no va” in Spanish, which means: “no go.”
Ichthyology
I’ll bet most of you reading this don’t know what the word ichthyology means. Neither did I. Highlight the yellow section below to find out.
Ichthyology is the study of fish.
Teddy Hot Foot
Smokey The Bear was originally named Hot Foot Teddy.
Dimes
American dimes were originally pronounced “deems.”
Half Manuscript
The Erie County Public Library has had half of Mark Twain’s original manuscript of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” since the late 1800’s, but where was the other half? It has been discovered just recently. Almost like a cliche, it was found in an old trunk in an attic. This attic belonged to the late James Fraser Gluck, who was a benefactor of the library while he was alive. Evidently, Twain sent the manuscript to him for the library, but he held half of it to complete reading at home, then forgot about it.
Kanawha
There used to be a state in America named Kanawha. It was later renamed West Virginia.
Modesto
You might wonder how Modesto, California got its name. The founders of the town were unwilling to have the place named after themselves, they were modest.
The Name of Philadelphia
The Greek word for brotherly love is Philadelphia.
Place Names
Here are some places with unusual names:
Truth or Consequences, New Mexico
Experiment, Georgia
Don’t Handle the Bobcats Without Gloves, Texas
Mars, Pennsylvania
Embarrass, Wisconsin
Mexican Hat, Utah
Enigma, Georgia
Old Joe, Arkansas
Smackover, Arkansas
Kissimme, Florida
Social Circle, Georgia
Waterproof, Louisiana
Why, Arizona
Zigzag, Oregon
Talent, Oregon
Zyxyz, California
Hygiene, Colorado
Imalone, Wisconsin
Gnaw Bone, Indiana
Bunlevel, North Carolina
What Cheer, Iowa
Humptulips, Washington
Scalp Level, Pennsylvania
Cheesequake, New Jersey
Looneyville, West Virginia
Monkey’s Eyebrow, Kentucky
