Andrew Sholl

Bloomers, Biros and Wellington Boots

How the Names Became the Words

Price: £6.99

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Details

Imprint: O'Mara Books

Publication date: 07/07/2016

ISBN: 9781782435747

Subject: Non-Fiction

Category: Language

Binding: Paperback

Size: Other

Extent: 224 pages

Illustration: Black-and-white line drawings

Territorial Rights: World (All Languages)

Edition Status: Out of Print

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Summary:

Revealing the history behind words from Hoover to Sandwich and Wellington Boots to the Biro, this guide to eponyms is full of surprises.

What's in a name? From Achilles to zeppelin, the words we use in everyday language invoke a cast of historical characters, from figures of ancient legend to modern-day sports stars. But have you ever stopped to wonder how on earth the names became the words we use so often?

How, for example, did Italian nationalist leader Giuseppe Garibaldi give his name to something so sweet as a biscuit? Who was the Gordon Bennett whose name has become an expression of surprise or displeasure? And who knew, when Odysseus set off on his ten-year voyage home in Homer's epic, that long journeys would take his name?

Behind so many words are real people with a story to tell. This fascinating book reveals the history behind the most familiar and more unusual eponyms.

Reviews:

Investigates the history behind many of the quirky sayings we use and uncovers a host of colourful characters and stories

Countryside magazine

A delightful and cheerfully engaging dictionary of eponyms, this clever, absorbing book explores the origins of hundreds of names

The Good Book Guide

Sales points:

  • This fascinating guide reveals the history behind eponyms – the people after whom a discovery, invention, place etc. is named or thought to be named

  • Beautifully packaged and illustrated with quirky cartoons, this is the perfect gift for anyone with a love of words, their origins and derivations

  • A new-look paperback edition of the popular hardback

  • From the publishers of A Certain Je Ne Sais Quoi - over 30,000 copies sold