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
thoughts in English
Whose Gloomy Dong?
We’ve all asked ourselves that at some point, I’m sure.
I’m happy to say I’m back from my little trip to Rome and Naples, and though I switched my brain off as much as possible, I couldn’t help seeing a little inspiration here and there.
Oh, you might say excitedly, he’s probably been thinking about the etymologies of some famous Roman emperor’s names, or about how we still use words related to the Roman Empire with reverance. I bet he’s done some research on the word pontiff after visiting the Vatican. Two such great cities are sure to provide anyone inclined to write on any subject with an abundance of ideas!
So anyway, the gloomy dong. Continue reading
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
Does the Moon Have a Name?
Kind of, yes.
The moon.
That’s its name, basically.
Of course you might say that a lot of planets have moons, and they have distinct names like Ganymede, Europa, and Titan, so why did we never give our own moon a name? Continue reading
Persons or People?
People.
For practical purposes, people is basically always right. Except for those few times when persons is right… 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
English-Language Thoughts 