A few stolen minutes out of your day to talk words and communication, because our daily lives are surrounded by the evolution and influence of words. Forget the grammar police. There is so much more to this conversation.
Episode #33 – The Glamour of Grammar (Yes, Seriously!) & The Latest in Words You Should Know
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Approximate transcript:
Welcome to Episode 33.
The Latest in Word, Language & Writing News
Starting out, as always with the latest in word, language, and writing news, here’s your update, as of this recording in early December 2020.
The “Word of the Year” lists have started to come out, folks. Sure, some industries have the best financial quarter of the year; wildlife photographers have the best snapshot of the year; sports fans have their top play. The dictionaries have their top words—and 2020 has been a big one for words. No light choices like “w00t” here (that’s W-zero-zero-T, thank you, 2007).
Some of my favorites on this year’s lists include “unmute” a top 2020 word according to Oxford Dictionaries, so applicable, right? I know you’re with me. And while “Pandemic” won top word of the year over at Merriam Webster (yes, yes, logical, timely, and historic) my favorites are in the runners-up, like “kraken,” “icon,” and “malarkey.” (We’re just going to ignore the fact that Merriam Webster also officially added “irregardless” as a word in their dictionary this year and that this nonsensical mistake-turned-casual-usage was just given its own seal of approval. Oh, English language, you evolve in such strange ways. (I think this is where I’d add the shrug emoji if I were writing a text. Think fast: do you consider emojis forms of writing? So many questions, so little time…)
Rounding out the lists, the Collins Dictionary named “lockdown” as its word of the year, but again, my favorites are in the runners up: “Tik-Toker” and “mukbang” (am I saying that one right?). The latter is one of the few words borrowed from Korean and brought into the English language, and it means, of course, a video or webcast where someone eats a large quantity of food for the entertainment value. Right. We really don’t know what to do with you, 2020.
Interestingly, Collins also points out that new verbs formed this year. From “socially distant,” we now have “to socially distance,” and while “self-isolating” did already exist as a verb, this verb form has apparently overtaken “self-isolation,” the noun form, in popular usage.
It’s been a wild year, and I know you can think of so many better adjectives for this year than wild. Here is your fill-in-the-blank opportunity. What descriptor would you attach to it?
English Language History & Trivia
Since we’re talking year-end summaries, let’s wrap up this last podcast of 2020 on an English language history and trivia note that might both surprise you and warm your language-loving heart.
Let’s talk about the glamour of grammar—no not tossing pearls onto semicolons or diamonds onto Oxford commas. I’m talking about the words “glamour” and “grammar.” Did you realize that these two are etymological siblings?
Here’s what you need to know.
Both of these words, “glamour” and “grammar,” both seem to trace their ancestry to the classical Latin word, grammătĭc, which involved the methodical study of literature and languages, but as time and cultures evolved, this concept of grammătĭca came to be known not only as the study of Latin. By the Middle ages, it came to be known as learning in general. The masses didn’t have access to education. Latin grammar, as with all other things, wasn’t available to most of European society, so the word evolved into a bigger scope.
Because education in general was mysterious to many, with common ideas that studying subjects like science was akin to studying magic and the occult, the idea of grammar took another twist. In fact, an old French word related to grammar was used to describe the occult sciences of magic and astrology. An obsolete English noun, “gramarye,” means occult learning and necromancy as well as learning in general.
So yes, in the Middle Ages, “grammatica” meant “scholarship and learning,” but the idea of the occult in learning lingered.
But then where does “glamour” come in?
Well, mysteries of this pair do remain, but it seems commonly accepted that “glamour” is a Scottish twist on the word “grammar,” holding onto the idea of magic and allure and dropping over time the relation with education.
There’s a precedence of “l” and “r” swaps in the English language. For example an army “colonel” is pronounced like a “kernel” of corn, with an “r” but there is no “r” in “c-o-l-o-n-e-l” colonel.
Of course, some argue that “glamour” is a mixing of “glimmer” and “grammar,” but that’s a less popular theory among the etymological researcher set.
If you ask me, there’s a lot of glamour in grammar, no matter how they’re connected, but somewhere deep in my grammar-loving heart, I do love this connection so much.
Language Challenge
For today’s language challenge, let’s talk magic, or more specifically sleight of hand. Think fast, how do you spell that word “sleight” in this phrase?
And as a second question, let’s talk glamour. If something has a certain “cachet,” how do you spell that word?
Ooh, are these questions tricky today? The answers are in the show notes.
Personal Update:
2020 has been a year that has made us all stop and reflect on so many levels and for all of us to count our blessings.
As of this recording, my third book, The Family Story Workbook: 105 Prompts & Pointers for Writing Your History, has officially launched into the world, and my virtual book tour is well underway, with stops in Richmond, Virginia and Austin, Texas behind me, and stops from New York to Georgia to Arizona to Pennsylvania ahead, among others. And I should also share that my first book, Get a Grip on Your Grammar: 250 Writing and Editing Reminders for the Curious and Confused, is now being distributed in India via a partnership between my publisher, Career Press, and Harper Collins India.
I say this as an update on my work in this moment, but also as a moment to pause and reflect. We all use our words every day. We all have stories. We all have voices. Everything I do is centered on empowering writers’ words, whatever they may be. So as we’re wrapping up the year, take a moment to ponder what you’re working on and what you have to say. How are you going to do it? I can honestly say I cannot wait to find out.
Tweet at me on Twitter, @KrisSpisak, or send me an email. I am cheering you on every step of the way.
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Words. Language. Communications. We’ve got this.