Month: July 2018

The Etymology of “Decal” and “Cockamamie”

Jess ZafarrisLeave a comment

"Decal," a design that can be transferred onto another surface, is short for "decalcomania," from French décalcomanie (Latin calcare "to tread on, press"). Decalcomania may also be the source of "cockamamie," meaning "nonsense, implausible," from the name of a series of children's temporary tattoos. Invented around 1750 by French engraver Simon François Ravenet when he… Continue reading The Etymology of “Decal” and “Cockamamie”

The Etymology of “Brownie” (the Impish Variety)

Jess ZafarrisLeave a comment

Thomas Keightley described brownies as "a personage of small stature, wrinkled visage, covered with short curly brown hair, and wearing a brown mantle and hood" in his 1823 compendium Fairy Mythology. (Full text of that passage from an 1892 version.) So by that logic the name is based on their clothing, which—considering they were household imps—might… Continue reading The Etymology of “Brownie” (the Impish Variety)