Animalogy \ The Animals in Our Everyday Words & Phrases

By now you would have listened to the Animalogy episodes about the words muscle, coccyx, and tragus — all parts of our body. All words from animals. Today, we have an entire episode on a number of other terms for parts of our anatomy that have animals hiding within. These and many more reflect how deeply rooted animals are in our consciousness, in our history, in our lives — and deep in our animal bones.

Thank you, listeners and supporters! Supporters receive transcripts of each and every episode. Go to Patreon.com/ColleenPatrickGoudreau to get your perks today!

The word meat goes back at least as far as 731 AD, but it didn't mean then what it does today. Its meaning was much broader. Understanding the history and evolution of the word can go a long way in normalizing plant-based meats and eschewing the derogatory qualifiers: “fake,” “faux,” “alternative,” “imitation,” “mock,” “replacement,” “analog,” or “substitute." Words matter.

Whereas the word veal in English simply means “flesh of a calf” and pork in English means “flesh of a pig used as food,” hidden in many of the Anglo-Saxon/Old English and Proto-Indo-European words for the living animals are clues about the physical, behavioral, or vocal characteristics of the living animals, reflecting a tendency to name animals based on typical attributes or activities.

Supporters receive written transcripts of each podcast episode. Visit AnimalogyPodcast.com for more.

Roughly 10,000 new words entered the English language during the Norman occupation and assimilation, particularly those having to do with the world of the ruling class. The effects of the linguistic class division are most apparent in the culinary realm, where words used by the aristocracy have French origins and words used by the commoners have Germanic origins. This is evident even today in the way we talk about certain animals, particularly those typically eaten by Westerners, with words rooted in Anglo-Saxon / Old English to indicate the living animals and words rooted in Old French to indicate the slaughtered animal as flesh for consumption.

Have you ever been "fleeced"? Have you ever "gone in search of the golden fleece" or "pulled the wool over someone's eyes"? Are your opinions "dyed in the wool"? In today's episode of Animalogy, I discuss the animal origins of these words and expressions, all of which have to do with the hair of sheep. In other words, they're Animalogies!

Thank you to the supporters of today's episode. Become a patreon today!