Claim OwnershipEtymoleon - Word History, the etymology podcast.
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© 2026 Leon Bailey-Green
Description
Word History is a podcast for people who enjoy words and history.
Each episode takes a small set of words linked to a theme. You'll hear what they mean, where they come from and which familiar words share the same linguistic roots, along with stories from the past related to their use.
Listen for words that sharpen expression, and brief histories that show how ideas and practices, as well as language, took shape. Across an archive of more than a hundred episodes, you'll find explanations of word, name and phrase origins.
The majority of etymologies featured return to Old English, Ancient Greek, Latin and Old French, providing a look into languages of the past that underpin English.
New episodes on Sundays.
Play the daily word game Derivety: https://derivety.com
Get in touch: https://etymoleon.com
109 Episodes
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This podcast returns on February 22nd 2026. This episode examines lesser-known words for discussions about Precision, looking at their origins and familiar words from the same root. Words explored include punctilious, ad litteram, cavilling, facsimile, pettifogging and fastidious. Find out when systems of measurement moved from regional variation to global uniformity. Sources: https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/20686987-candelabra-selected-essays-and-addresses https://wordhistorie...
This episode explores uncommon words for discussions about Power, examining their origins and familiar words from the same root. Words highlighted include recrudescence, lese-majeste, contumacious, de facto, seditious and arrogate. Hear how the transfer of royal power was not always determined by birth. Sources: https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofEngland/King-Stephen-Anarchy/ https://debretts.com/royal-family/the-royal-succession/ https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/displ...
This episode covers rare words for conversations about Time, exploring their origins and recognisable words from the same root. Words featured include desultory, ephemeral, dilatory, tarry, exigent and evitable. Listen for the history of how time, once determined locally, became standardised across Britain with the emergence of the railway. Sources: https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/387/294/ https://www.folger.edu/explore/shakespeares-works/much-ado-about-nothing/read/1/1/&n...
This podcast returns late January 2026. This episode begins with why Christmas carols were banned in the 17th century, and how the word carol comes from a French term for a dance performed by singers. Words like ditty, jingle and number are all used to describe Christmas songs, with number tracing back to theatre running orders. The episode also examines the etymologies of words found in carol lyrics, including gaily, orient, stranger and abhor, which shares a root with horrible and horrid. I...
This time we're getting into terms of etiquette and the origins of certain expected behaviours, starting with the word etiquette itself, which shares a root with ticket because rules of behaviour were once written on small tabs. There are many theories about why placing your elbows on the table is considered rude, with one explanation linked to the need for stability. Forks were originally viewed as pretentious tools before becoming symbols of proper dining. In this context protocol refers to...
This episode marks St Andrew's Day by looking at the origins of terms linked to Scottish dialects. It begins with the etymologies of Scotland and other historical names for the region, including Caledonia and Alba. The episode also examines the various theories behind the word haggis, with explanations pointing to Old Norse and French roots. Wee, meaning little, is unmistakably Scottish, but other everyday English words such as glamour, numpty and eejit also have Scottish connections. Landsca...
This episode looks at names that work across cultures, names that sound alike but emerge from entirely different linguistic roots. It opens with demographic data from the USA and from England and Wales that helps explain why many parents now seek names that fit multiple cultural contexts. In England and Wales, 37% of newborns have a parent born abroad, and in the USA approval of mixed marriage has risen from 4% in 1958 to 94% today. The name Maya or Maia can mean beloved, magic, brave, prince...
This time we're looking at words connected to the art of manifesting, tracing the origins of terms like abundance, affirmation and visualise. To describe what we sense from a person but can't see, we turn to words such as vibe, aura and energy, the last of which comes from the ancient Greek ergon, meaning work, a root shared with ergonomic and synergy. Some words run counter to the idea of manifesting, like doubt, which may stem from the Latin word for two, suggesting a mind pulled in two dir...
This podcast returns mid-November 2025. This time we're looking into the etymologies of vegan related terms, beginning with the history of the Vegan Society and the roots of other dietary labels such as pescetarian and the more recent reducetarian. Soya beans take their name from the sauce, not the other way around, and Quorn, the brand name for a mycoprotein product, has an unexpected historical link to fox hunting. There's also a linguistic connection between the words plant and clan, a par...
This episode looks at the differences between varieties of English across the Anglosphere, examining the origins of words that vary from place to place. Learn where the words trousers and pants come from, why thongs might refer to footwear or underwear, and whether you'd use a stroller or a pram depending on where you live. Discover how courgette and zucchini share the same linguistic root, as do arugula and rocket. The episode also uncovers the origins of nicknames like Yank, Pom and Limey, ...
This time we're tracing the etymology of words tied to lies and deceit, beginning with research into how children learn, or fail, to tell untruths, and a look at words of honesty such as blunt and authentic, the latter etymologically meaning 'self doing'. Fake and bogus grew out of criminal slang, with bogus first referring to a machine that produced counterfeit coins. Charlatan describes someone full of empty talk, and its origins may be more obvious to Spanish speakers, much like Irish spea...
This episode looks at surname origins through the lens of television soap operas, beginning with why these dramas are called soaps and how the conglomerate P&G remains involved in producing them. Some familiar family names point back to professions, with Archer and Fletcher tied to archery and another linked to roofing. British soap EastEnders is famous for tangled family ties, including two characters who at different times have been step-siblings, step-parent and step-son, and in-laws. ...
This episode traces the language of sugar and sweetness, from the Arabic roots of the word sugar to the names of modern artificial sweeteners. Discover how accidents in the lab led to the discovery of saccharin, sucralose and aspartame, and how aspartame is linked to asparagus. Follow the shared origin of mead, the ancient honey-based drink, Miod, the Polish word for honey, and the name Maeve. Learn how syrup joined sugar in passing through Arabic into English and the likely origin behind the...
This episode uncovers the surprising histories of fragrant words. Many, including perfume, incense and bakhoor, trace back to roots connected with smoke and fumes. Eau de toilette may seem like an odd name for something sprayed on the body, but the history of the word toilet makes it clearer. Equally unexpected is potpourri, which goes back to a term meaning rotten pot. Find out why the number 5 became the name of the century's most iconic fragrance and the story behind the naming of the Marc...
This episode looks at words that contradict themselves, carrying opposite meanings at once or shifting dramatically over time. Manufacturing suggests mass production today, yet it comes from Latin meaning 'made by hand'. A model can be an unfinished prototype or a finished ideal, while mistress carries both admiration and scandal. Execute traces back to a Latin root meaning, 'to follow', but does it mean to begin or to kill? Is supporting someone holding them up or holding them down? And why ...
This podcast returns in September 2025. This time we're tracing the origins of Italian sauce, pasta, pizza and dish names. There are various theories as to why puttanesca shares its name with an Italian word for 'a woman of ill repute', but the etymology of ragù, which is linguistically connected to the word disgusting, is more straightforward. Ciabatta may appear traditional, but it was actually created in the 1980s, and its name is linked to feet. Surprisingly, lasagne might have English ro...
This episode traces the meanings and origins of names beginning with F, through the lens of historical figures connected to mythology, politics, innovation and the beauty industry. Falguni Nayar, the billionaire founder of India's largest beauty e-commerce platform, has a name rooted in time, like May, Autumn or Sunday. Freya, now a popular baby name in England and Wales, is tied to a Norse goddess and shares linguistic roots with German and Dutch terms for women. Also explored are the names ...
This episode looks at terms connected to making assumptions, starting with the often-cited origin of the phrase "when you assume, you make an ass out of u/you and me". The word bias originally referred to a diagonal line, while projection comes from roots meaning to throw forward. Occam’s Razor is a principle that favours the simplest explanation, and Simpson’s Paradox highlights how data can be misleading. The episode also examines how mistaken assumptions about animals gave rise to expressi...
This episode looks into the language of tabloid journalism, starting with the surprising pharmaceutical origins of the word tabloid itself. The British Daily Mail and Daily Mirror were the first newspapers to adopt the format, offering condensed news in both style and content. They were both founded by Alfred Harmsworth. Find out why gossip is called "tea", how the word gossip has roots in godparents, and why press photographers came to be known as paparazzi. Also examined are the origins of ...
This time we're looking at terms related to independence and free will, as Americans prepare to celebrate Independence Day. The episode opens with a brief look at the events leading to America's break from Britain, followed by the origins of words like declaration, independent and sovereign. We also look at countries such as Sri Lanka, Belize and Zimbabwe, which changed their names after gaining greater independence. Belize's former British name came via Spanish and referenced the surrounding...
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08/03/2015: I love listening to the different meanings of words and/or names. I have listened to all of the episodes up to this date and will continue to listen to them. Great Podcast!!!