How did the centre of world commerce, Wall Street, get it's name?

In September of 1653, the settlers in what is now New York City felt threatened by the local Natives and by the possibility of an invasion by Oliver Cromwell’s army. For protection, they built a large protective wall that stretched a half-mile across Manhattan Island. That wall was situated on the exact spot that we now know as the financial centre of the world: Wall Street.

Why are only citizens of the United States called “Americans”?

After discarding dozens of suggestions, Canada took its name from the Native American word kanata. The most popular of the names considered by the United States was Columbia, which is why the nation’s capital is located in the District of Columbia. But because they couldn’t make a final decision, the people of the United States have accepted the unofficial name given to them by the British during the war of independence. They are, simply, Americans.

What is the difference between a “ghost writer” and a “hack writer”?

A ghost writer is a craftsman who writes speeches or books for another person who gets the credit as author. Although well paid, they’re called “ghosts” because they’re invisible. In the fourteenth century, while there were warhorses and draft or workhorses, an ordinary rented riding horse was known as a “hackney” or a “hack.” The word hack came to mean anything for hire, including writers who did commercial work of any kind to support their efforts at art.

Why is a speaker’s platform known as a “rostrum”?

After a victory at sea the Romans customarily removed the decorative prow or rostrum from defeated enemy ships to be returned to Rome as symbols of their supremacy on the high seas. These rostra were displayed on the speaker’s platform in the Roman Forum until there were so many that the stage from which a speaker addressed the assembly became known as the rostrum, or the ship’s prow.

Why are the names of those out of favour said to be kept in a “black book” or on a “blacklist”?

The “blacklisting” of artists by the American Congress during the 1950s was a shameful and well documented reign of terror, but blacklists and little black books are still quietly with us, especially among those who see enemies everywhere. It began with King Henry VIII of England, whose infamous black book recorded so-called abuses in monasteries to justify his purge against the Catholic Church.

Why is a work supervisor called a “straw boss”?

A straw boss is usually a supervisor or foreman of menial work, and the label comes from the farm. The “big boss” was in charge of the entire threshing crew, whose main task was to harvest the wheat from the chaff, which was straw. The “straw boss” was in charge of the secondary crew, whose job it was to gather and bail the discarded by-product. “Straw boss” has come to mean a petty supervisor without any real authority.

Why is a small-time player called a “piker”?

Many early highways had entrances that were blocked by a pike, or long pole, which was “turned,” or opened, after a toll was paid. These highways were called turnpikes. Those who walked these roads were sometimes vagrants and very often unsophisticated farm boys on their way to seek their fortunes in the city. If you just “came down the pike” you were naive and often admonished as a “piker.”

Why is a spineless coward called a “wimp”?

Someone who is weak and indecisive is often called a wimp, which is a short form of the word whimpering. The origin of wimp is a series of children’s books written in the 1890s by Evelyn Sharp, which featured characters called Wymps who loved playing practical jokes on others but who would cry when jokes were played on them. In the 1930s, a corpulent Popeye cartoon character named J. Wellington “Wimpy” kept the word alive.

What is the difference between a “bum,” a “tramp,” and a “hobo”?

During the Great Depression of the 1930s, Godfrey Irwin published American Tramp and Underworld Slang, within which he explained the difference. Bums loaf and sit; tramps loaf and walk; but a hobo moves and works. Hobo is derived from hoeboy, because many of the young men travelling the rails were from farms and carried a hoe with them so that they could work the gardens of those households that might employ them.

Why were young women from the Roaring Twenties called “flappers”?

The 1920s was a breakout decade for young women who’d just won the right to vote. The era evokes images of young flappers like the cartoon character Betty Boop, who was only sixteen, wildly dancing to the Charleston. They were called flappers because of the way they resembled a baby duck flapping its wings before being able to fly. Flapper is a very old word meaning a girl too young to conceive.

Why is a person who takes punishment for someone else called a “fall guy”?

Since the 1880s, “taking a fall” has meant to be arrested or imprisoned. To take a fall now figuratively means to be taken down for something you may or may not have done, but a fall guy, like a professional wrestler, has been paid or framed to take punishment. On a movie set, a fall guy is a stuntman who again is paid to literally take the fall, sometimes from high buildings, for another actor.

Why is the presiding officer of a committee called a “chairman"?

Whether it’s a chairman or a chairwoman, that person is in the seat of authority and has been since the fourteenth century. At that time a chair was a throne (it came from the Greek word kathedra, leading to the word cathedral for the place housing the seat of the bishop). In business, the person in charge sat in a comfortable armed chair, while everyone else sat on stools, and so he took the esteemed title “chairman.”

Why were women warriors called “Amazons”?

Homer created the ancient Greek myth of fierce women warriors known as Amazons. Amazon is made up from A, meaning “without,” and mazos, meaning “breast,” because legend has it that they removed one breast to better throw a spear or use a bow and arrow. Amazons only visited men to become pregnant, and at birth only girl children were allowed to live to be raised by the Amazon warriors’ mothers.

Why are prison informers referred to as “finks”?

A fink, whether in prison or not, is a derogatory reference to someone who seeks favour from the authorities for information that they have learned in confidence. It’s said that a fink is someone who sings to the police or the boss like a canary, which all becomes logical when you realize that fink is the Yiddish word for “finch.” Finches, or finks, are a family of songbirds, of which the canary is one of the most vocal.

Why is an unidentified person referred to as “John Doe”?

“John Doe” is the name used to describe someone within legal circumstances when the true name is either unknown or indiscreet to reveal. The practice dates back to British courts in the early nineteenth century, when John and Jane Doe were used as names for unknown or unclear defendants in real estate eviction disputes. “Doe” was an extremely rare name, and there is nothing to suggest that any real John Doe ever existed.

Why is a small child called a “little shaver”?

During the period when settlers spent a lot of time cutting wood, if a son looked or acted like his father he was called a “chip off the old block,” meaning that except for size, the two were as clearly related as a chip cut from its original block of wood from the family tree. A little shaver is the same, except that a shaving is smaller than a chip. A “sprig,” on the other hand, is a child too small yet to even have a branch on the family tree.

Why are frenzied women referred to as “hysterical” but not equally frenetic men?

The physicians of ancient Greece considered hysteria to be an exclusively female problem caused by a disorder within the woman’s distinctive internal organs. Hystera is the Greek word for womb and survives today in the medical procedure hysterectomy. Men suffer the antisocial symptoms of hysteria less frequently than women, but when they do, they are called sociopaths.

Why are weather forecasters called “meteorologists”?

Meteorology became the science of forecasting weather during the fourth century B.C., when it was believed that dramatic heavenly events were the cause of everything, especially weather — and there was nothing more dramatic than the arrival of a meteor. In Greek, meteorology means “a discourse from high in the air.” Studying meteors to predict weather ended in the late seventeenth century, but weather forecasters are still known as meteorologists.

Why are the stalwart defenders of a status quo referred to as “the Old Guard”?

“The Old Guard” suggests an outdated group defending something whose time has passed, but the expression began in glory at the battle of Waterloo. Known for their fierce loyalty to Napoleon, the Imperial Guard was composed of the Young Guard, the Middle Guard, and the Old Guard. It was the Old Guard from this group who mounted the final brave but hopeless French charge at the Battle of Waterloo.

Why is a pretentious person called a “snob”?

A snob is someone who pretends wealth and demands respect he doesn’t deserve. Universities only educated children of the nobility until Cambridge opened its doors to commoners in the seventeenth century. These new students were required to register in Latin as Sine Nobilitate, which means “without nobility.” Abbreviated, this Latin phrase is S.Nob, pronounced “snob,” and it took on the meaning of anyone above his station.