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Continue reading →: nix (niks)Our first monster is a malevolent creature from Germanic folklore. Nixes are water spirits that live in rivers and lakes and lure people into the water to their deaths. Nixes can take on many forms; males can shapeshift into humans, snakes, or fish, while females are commonly portrayed as beautiful…
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Continue reading →: Coming Soon: Creature Feature
Halloween is almost upon us and I am so excited! In honor of my favorite holiday, every week this month I will unveil a scary creature guaranteed to make you shriek in fright and lock your doors at night. The first Creature Feature will be posted on October 8, so…
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Continue reading →: koekje (cook-yuh)Every country has its own word for “cookie,” a sweet confection that can be soft or crisp. The word “cookie” comes from koekje, a Dutch word that means “little cake.” Dutch immigrants brought the word “koekje” to North America when they began to settle in New Amsterdam (later called New…
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Continue reading →: gifblaar (gifˌblär)Hello everyone! Today, I’ve chosen to post about an unusual word from Afrikaans. Afrikaans is an Indo-European language and is specifically part of the West Germanic language tree. It is the official language of South Africa and Namibia and is spoken by millions of people. Afrikaans is descended from Dutch,…
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Continue reading →: vexillology (veksəˈläləjē)
The Rio Olympics are well underway, making this a great time to engage in vexillology. Vexillology is the study of flags. It originates from the Latin word vexillum, which means flag, and contains the Greek suffix -logy, which means study of. There are 206 countries, each with their own unique…
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Continue reading →: LEGO (lā-gō)
Many months ago, my family and I visited the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, Illinois. While we were there, we spent a majority of the time at the Brick by Brick exhibit. This exhibit featured gargantuan LEGO-built structures of famous landmarks from all around the world. These buildings…
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Continue reading →: xenolinguist (zenə-liŋgwə̇st)
Star Trek Beyond was released a few days ago and I couldn’t resist writing about one of my favorite Star Trek characters, Nyota Uhura. Lieutenant Uhura is the chief communications officer on the USS Enterprise. She is an expert in xenolinguistics and can speak and understand many alien languages, including…
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Continue reading →: pacific (pəˈsifik)
Last week, my family and I went on a relaxing vacation to beautiful Monterey, California. Monterey, a small seaside city on the central coast of California, is one of my favorite places to visit because of the mild weather and beautiful beaches. My sister and I love to stroll on…
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Continue reading →: Name That Animal: Challenge #4
I thought a Name That Animal Challenge would be a fun way to commemorate my 100th blog post! Pretend that you are a scientist and you have just discovered this new animal and you have the privilege of naming this unusual species. Scientists usually name new species by using…
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Continue reading →: Books to Explore
Hi everyone! I’ve created a new page on my blog called “Books To Explore.” On this page, you’ll find a list of some of my favorite books. Since reading is a wonderful way to discover words, I thought this would be a great addition to my blog. Let me know…
Hello,
I’m Tara!
My name is Tara and I am a recent graduate of Duke University, with dual degrees in cultural anthropology and political science, and a minor in linguistics. Twelve years ago, I started this blog to share my love of words with others and teach people about the intricacies of etymology and words across our beloved English language!
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