Lovely, isn’t it? In Italian of course, it’s Napoli. And while the English and Italian names for the city are quite similar, I’ve often wondered: why does Naples have an S at the end of it? Continue reading
Naples
etymology
Top Ten Posts of 2018! (so far…)
-I thought he was on holiday?
-Yeah, but this looks like something he threw together before he left, and set to publish while he was away, to make sure he keeps getting enough clicks. Continue reading
Bon Voyage!
Or perhaps buon viaggio would be more appropriate, considering that when this is published, I’ll be on a flight from Dublin to Rome for a few days of well-earned rest. So you won’t hear from me for about a week or so, but rest assured my immersion in Italian will give me lots of fresh ideas to write about!
For now, let’s think about how we’d say bon voyage in English. Well, bon voyage of course, we’ve borrowed it from French. Or you could say have a nice trip, or safe journey, but you probably wouldn’t use the word voyage (the English word, not French), would you? Continue reading
Young and Old, Old and New
I keep thinking about surnames, even though I’ve written about them quite a few times now. I think I find them so interesting because in the past, when they were granted to people, there was a degree of conscious thought behind them, and they were quite literal and descriptive, compared to first names. Recently, I’ve been pondering the surnames Young and Oldman. Continue reading
Blue Riband
A Toast!
You can have lovely buttered toast for breakfast, but you can also raise a toast to someone. Why do we use the word toast in such completely different ways? Continue reading
Of Course!
Anyone who writes fairly regularly develops certain habits. Repeated words, expressions, stylistic tricks. I’ve noticed that as I write, there are certain things I keep doing. Like using of course a lot, for example. Continue reading
English-Language Thoughts 