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lead

I’m rooting for the connection to Tamazight; we don’t have enough words from the Tamazight languages.

Dave Wilton

22 Dec 2023 • 2 min read

A Roman, lead water pipe, c. 1–300 CE. The inscription indicates the pipe was produced by an imperial procurator aquarum (manager of waters).

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2024 Wordorigins Words of the Year (WOTY)

As in past years, I’ve come up with a list of Words of The Year (WOTY). I do things a bit differently from other sites in that I don’t try to select one term to represent the entire year. Instead, I select twelve terms, one for each month.

26 Dec 2024 8 min read

poinsettia

This flower (Euphorbia pulcherrima), native to Mexico and associated with Christmas, has a rather straightforward etymology. It is named after Joel Roberts Poinsett, who served as the U.S. minister (i.e., ambassador) to Mexico from 1825–30. An amateur botanist, Poinsett sent samples of the flower back to the

23 Dec 2024 1 min read

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Epiphany / Twelfth Night (paid)

23 Dec 2024 3 min read

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