Etymoleon - Word History, the etymology podcast.

This episode goes whole hog into the language of pigs, exploring the origins of terms like hog, farrow, shoat and boar. Discover why a gilt isn't just a government bond, and how an old word for the ba...

19 Jan 202513min

This time, we're unwrapping etymology through the history of Christmas gifting. The word gift in both English and German comes from the same root, though in German it evolved to mean poison. Must-have...

15 Dec 202414min

In this episode, we tune in to the origins of television terms. TV broadcasts date back to the late 1920s, but the first remote control, a wired device called the "lazy bones", arrived in the 1950s. T...

8 Dec 202414min

This time, we're going around the world of words tied to the British Empire, from terms of governance like dominion, protectorate and territory to words describing those settling new lands, such as co...

1 Dec 202415min

This episode uncovers the etymologies behind the names of style icons from screen, stage, catwalk and beyond. Looking into Karl Lagerfeld's last name reveals the reason we call beer lager, while a cab...

24 Nov 202414min

This episode delivers the origins of words related to pregnancy. IVF is a common term today, but early media reports often used the phrase test tube baby, which predates the 1970s when in-vitro fertil...

17 Nov 202415min

In this episode, we scrub up the origins of cleaning-related words. The English towns of West Bromwich and Castle Bromwich share an etymology with a term for sweeping floors, while laundry has roots c...

10 Nov 202416min

This time, we're weighing the evidence behind the origins of words related to justice. The word dock is thought to trace back to a term for a chicken coop, while the Latin root of innocent links to th...

3 Nov 202415min