By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
When the word ‘homophobia’ was first invented, it didn’t mean what it means now. Instead, it had a different meaning. To discover the origins of the term ‘homophobia’, we have to delve into the etymology of the word, examine a small amount of Latin and less Greek, and discover how the word was, in effect, coined twice: the first being a false start, the second representing a change in attitude in wider society.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
Where did the word ‘homosexual’ originate? It’s a surprisingly recent coinage, and dates from the second half of the nineteenth century, with a Victorian poet and critic being the first person to use the word in English. Let’s take a closer look at the etymology of ‘homosexual’, and learn what the word has in common with ‘television’, ‘petroleum’, and ‘automobile’.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
Where does the word ‘odyssey’ come from, and what does it mean? In order to delve into the origins of ‘odyssey’, we have to travel back almost three thousand years to ancient Greece and one of the most exciting narratives in the whole of world literature.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
The question ‘what is a woman?’ has been widely discussed and debated in recent times, given the ongoing arguments – which have entered mainstream politics – surrounding gender and self-identification. But the question of where the word woman comes from is also of interest, since, as is so often the case with everyday words whose etymologies we take for granted, the origins of the term ‘woman’ contains several surprising details.
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)
Where does the word ‘pandemonium’ come from? This word, which has come to have somewhat different meaning from its original use, has its origins in a classic work of English literature, where it has a very specific meaning. But what is that work of literature, and what was the word’s original meaning?