THANKSGIVING WORDS WITH BIZARRE ORIGINS

                   10. Thanksgiving Words With Bizarre Origins

Here now, the uncommon origins for ten common Thanksgiving words.

10.Mirth And Merriment

Both mirth and merry come from an Old English word meaning “joy”

 or “pleasure.” These words are themselves derived from an 

older German root meaning “short-lasting.” Thus, something merry 

is short-lived—although the consequences may not be.

In the 17th century, the word “merry” could include decidedly earthier connotations

, such as a merry-bout of sexual intercourse. And sometimes a merry-bout

 resulted in a “merry-begot,” an illegitimate child. However, since 12 percent

 of all 17th century babies died in their first year, perhaps a merry-begot 

was a short-lived pleasure after all.

9.WISHBONE

"I have known

 the shooting star

 to spoil a night’s rest;

 and have seen a

 man in love grow

 pale, and lose

 his appetite, upon

 the plucking of

 a merry-thought.”

 -The Right 

Honorable Joseph

 Addison

The word merry also gave us the merrythought, which we now call

 the wishbone. The custom of pulling apart the wishbone dates back 

at least to Roman times and may have evolved from the

 Etruscan practice of alectryomancy, the practice of divining

 the future using rooster clavicles.

According to Roman legend, the Etruscans selected the wishbone

 because its “V” shape resembled a human groin, the repository 

of life. Thus, the wishbone was seen as an appropriate way to

 unravel life’s mysteries. The resemblance of the bone to a

 woman’s pudenda has also been said to be responsible for it

 being given the name “merrythought.”

In the 17th century, it was sometimes thought that whoever ended

 up with the longer piece of the merrythought would marry first, a 

clever play on words. Alternatively, it was believed that the person 

with the longer piece would get whatever wish he chose, a custom 

firmly entrenched by the 19th century. English settlers brought the

 practice with them to the New World, and we still pull the wishbone

 apart today.

8.FORK

1.   

Whether it’s called a merrythought or a wishbone, the proper term 

for the bone we pull apart on Thanksgiving is “furcula.” It comes from

 the Latin furca, meaning “pitchfork.” Before becoming the word for

 what was then a two-pronged utensil, the term was used in England to

 refer to a forked instrument used by torturers, so you might want to be 

careful about saying “stick a fork in me, I’m done” after you’ve eaten too

 many mashed potatoes.

Although the fork seems like an obvious tool, it was not used for eating

 until the eighth or ninth century, and then only by the nobility in parts of 

what is now the Middle East. Popular legend has it that Catherine dei 

Medici brought the fork to France from Italy when she married King Henry I 

of France in the 16th century. However, the use of the word to mean a table 

fork is first attested in English some hundred years earlier.

7.BEAR/ALE

Latin may also have given us the word “beer,” from bibere,

 meaning “to drink.” But it may be that beer derives from an old 

Germanic word for barley, the grain from which it is generally

 brewed. This is questionable, however, since the native 

Germanic word for beer was aluth, from which we get our English

 word “ale.”

The origins of aluth, in turn, are unclear. One possibility is that it

 came from an Indo-European root meaning “bitter.” Another is that 

it came from alu—a root with connotations of sorcery, magic, or 

possession—so when your obnoxious Uncle Al spills a frosty one 

on you during the game, just smile and tell him it’s enchanting. Ale

 also gave us the English word “bridal,” because in the Middle Ages, 

ale was a noun that meant a feast. A bride ale was literally a feast in

 honor of a marriage—followed, no doubt, by a merry-bout.

6.THANKSGIVING

Over time, the “thank” form of “think” evolved to refer to favorable 

thoughts and, eventually, gratitude. So if you think the turkey was 

delicious,

 be sure to express your thanks—otherwise, your hostess may 

think her

 meal went thunk.

While we are thinking merry thoughts, let’s take a look at the word

 “Thanksgiving” itself. The “thank” in Thanksgiving comes from

 the same Germanic root as “think”—as in think, thank, thunk, the

 latter of which was once proper English. Although we no longer

 follow this pattern for the word “think,” we still use it with the verbs

 “drink” and “clink.” Note, however, that the “thunk” form of “think” 

is unrelated to the word “thunk,” meaning “thud.” That word is 

a mid-20th century blend of “thud” and “clunk.”

5.TURKEY

The first Europeans to see what we call a turkey were likely Christopher

 Columbus and the crew of his fourth American voyage. They called the

 animalgallina de la tierra, or “land chicken.”

The word “turkey” is short for “Turkey cock,” a term that originally referred 

to the guinea fowl. The origins of the word “turkey” to refer to a bird that 

is native to America are uncertain, but it may be because it was once

 brought to England via Turkey. Pilgrims to the New World became 

confused by the similarity of the land chicken to the bird they knew as a

 turkey, so it was named by mistake. Though turkeys were common

 fare for early American settlers, they didn’t become part of the

 Thanksgiving tradition until around the mid-19th century.

4.SAGE

For many people, the herb sage is associated with Thanksgiving, 

but historically, sage’s primary use has been medicinal. This is reflected

 in its botanical name, Salvia officinalis. In Latin, salvus meant “healthy,”

 a word that also gave us the English “safe.” Sage has been used to

 treat inflamed gums, excessive perspiration, memory loss, depression,

 sore throat, swollen sinuses, acne, toenail fungus, hot flashes, 

and painful menstruation, among other things. Because sage is also used 

to combat diarrhea, gas, and bloating, it’s the perfect herb for a holiday 

that often results in gustatory overindulgence.

The word “sage” meaning “wise” is unrelated to the herb. That sage comes

 from a Latin root meaning “to taste.” Taking all three meanings of the

 word literally, sage in your Thanksgiving dinner is tasty, healthy, and wise.

3.CRANBERRIES

Cranberries grow not in water, as commonly believed, but in bogs. 

They are sometimes referred to as bogberries or, less accurately, as

 fenberries or marshworts. Cranberries are, however, often floated in

 water during harvesting, which makes them easier to harvest and

 increases their exposure to sunlight. More sunlight helps cranberries 

develop greater concentrations of anthocyanins, the phytonutrients

 believed to give cranberries antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. 

Cranberries are a popular treatment for urinary tract infections and believed

 by some to prevent cancer.

No Thanksgiving 

table

 would be

 complete 

without some form 

of 

cranberry sauce or

 jelly. 

The cran- in 

“cranberry” 

shares its

 root

 with 

the bird called a crane.

 This may be due to the 

resemblance between

 the plant’s stamen and the

 beak of a crane.

2.MARSHMALLOWS

Today’s commercial marshmallow candies don’t actually

 contain

 any marshmallow. Instead, commercial marshmallows are

 thickened

 with gelatin, thereby negating the candy’s original healing

 properties an

d making them unsuitable for vegetarians.

Marshmallow has been used for more than 2,000 years as

 medicine as

 well as food. The root and leaves contain a gummy substance 

called 

mucilage. When mixed with water, the mucilage forms a

 slick gel, 

which coats the throat and stomach and reduces irritation.

 In the 19th 

century, people would take juice from marshmallow roots

 and cook it 

with egg whites and sugar. The cooked mixture was whipped

 into a

 foamy meringue and allowed to harden, creating a medicinal

 candy to soothe sore throats.

 .

While cranberries 

don’t actually 

grow in marshes, 

the plant known 

as the

 marsh mallow,

 or marshmallow, 

does. 

The

 marshmallow’s

 botanical

 name,

Althea 

officinalis,

 comes from

 the Greek 

althein, meaning “to heal.”

1.TOFURKY

Tofu, for those of you who don’t know, is fermented soy

 bean curd. It 

is valued for its high protein content, as well as its ability to

 absorb

 flavors from other foods. Tofu is probably best enjoyed without

 thinking 

of the origins of the word—literally “rotten beans,” which

 comes

 to us from Chinese dou(“beans”) and fu (“rotten”).And so as

 not to

 leave out the vegetarians, we conclude with Tofurky, a turkey 

substitute 

created in 2000 by Turtle Island Foods. Tofurky is madefrom tofu

, wheat 

gluten, oil, and “natural flavors,” which include certain yeasts that

 lend 

Tofurky a “meaty” taste.Photo credit: What’s Cooking America.

And on that merry note, Happy Thanksgiving.

REGARDS,

Ms. Sneha Patel