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Do name changes on the map count as fossil words? If so, we may need an entire subsection in which to put them!
Belize, formerly British Honduras M-A-P-U-T-O (the capital of Mozambique), formerly Lourenco Marques Benin, formerly Dahomey Kaallit Nunaat, formerly Greenland
Do name changes on the map count as fossil words? If so, we may need an entire subsection in which to put them!
Belize, formerly British Honduras M-A-P-U-T-O (the capital of Mozambique), formerly Lourenco Marques Benin, formerly Dahomey Kaallit Nunaat, formerly Greenland
the list goes on and on...
Also the country that used to be Burma, whose current name makes me think of Mallomars. Myanmar, maybe? Too lazy to look it up.
I didn't know Greenland had a new name. Thanks for the info. It's Greenland on the map in my daughter's room, and it is way too big besides.
I recon these be shining times for fine grammatical demagogues who fancy staid notions of propriety and civilized communique with the squalid, disenfranchised underclass of our wretched and incorrigible society...and stuff.
Also interesting how ***** was once an insulting word to homosexuals, and now they embrace it. I've even met someone who specializes in "***** studies".
I also knew a girl in my childhood named "Gay". By the time she was an adult, her name had a new meaning, and she started going by her middle name instead.
Edit: WOW that the site blocks out Q-U-E-E-R. That's a little ridiculous.
I once worked with someone who had the name spelled Gaye. She said no one ever gave her a problem, but I can understand some may want to change.
Do name changes on the map count as fossil words? If so, we may need an entire subsection in which to put them!
Belize, formerly British Honduras M-A-P-U-T-O (the capital of Mozambique), formerly Lourenco Marques Benin, formerly Dahomey Kaallit Nunaat, formerly Greenland
the list goes on and on...
I don't think that's the same thing. A word fossil is an ordinary word, as opposed to a proper noun, embedded in another word or phrase that's has fallen out of regular use, but remains in some words or phrases, sometimes in just one.
Having said that I can't resist..... Sri Lanka, formerly Ceylon.
I recon these be shining times for fine grammatical demagogues who fancy staid notions of propriety and civilized communique with the squalid, disenfranchised underclass of our wretched and incorrigible society...and stuff.
I hope my love of words (or that of others) doesn't offend anyone or make them feel squalid ...and things.
keelhaul - remember I'll keelhaul you! It's a phrase that made it pretty clear someone was angry and wanted to punish someone else.
The word comes from an unbelievably cruel, but true maritime punishment where a sailor was tied to a rope, thrown overboard and pulled underneath the ship to the other side, therefore hauled across the keel, the bottom of the ship. At a minimum the sailor could be badly cut and bruised. At worst, he could be killed. The word probably only survives by the use of the phrase by landlovers who never set foot on a boat or ship.
Instead of saying "good grief!", my Mom and aunt both used to say "gee manently!" or "criminently!" By the way, I've never heard anyone under age 60 say those.
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