Buttons have been in use for 1000's of years and are very much taken for granted in our everyday lives. Most use them without a second thought. Originally used as a practical closure for garments or bags, they have evolved into digital variations on our computers, phones and other electronic appliances. Some are used by artisans to create wonderful fashion accessories. According to Online Etymology, the word 'button' originates from the Old French 'bouton' from 'bouter' meaning 'to thrust' and the Germanic 'butt' meaning 'thick end'. A tin of old buttons can captivate young and old for hours on end. Find one from a military uniform...
Easter, the holiday festival celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In other European languages, the festival has names derived from Jewish Passover or ‘pesah’. In English, curiously, the name for this Christian festival has origins in Paganism. Easter or ‘Eostre’, in Old English, possibly relates to the Germanic goddess of spring by the same name or variant, ‘Ostara’. Venerable Bede, the first writer of an English history, suggests that the Pagan Eostre celebrations included eggs and hares. Perhaps these familiar symbols of Easter may have non-Christian origins. Considering hares are native to the British Isles; and rabbits or the Easter bunnies, were introduced by the Romans. Thes...
Recently a friend asked if I would write a blog post on the difference in meaning between the words ‘uninterested’ and ‘disinterested’. She said that she kept hearing the words used interchangeably and that she was beginning to doubt that she was using the words correctly herself. Let’s take a look at this confusing pair of words… Is there actually a difference between ‘uninterested’ and ‘disinterested’? The beautiful (and annoying!) thing about the English language is its inconsistency – as with anything else, certain words and certain meanings (and sometimes even certain spellings!) go in and out of fashion. Language ...
Like with the months, the names of the days in English hark back to the Romans. They are named after the seven ‘planets’ of classical astronomy: the sun, the moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. Later, the Germanic peoples adjusted the names of the days so that they reflected their own mythology rather than that of the Romans. As English is part of the West Germanic family of languages, the English words for the days (mostly) derive from these Germanic names. Monday – The word ‘Monday’ comes from the Old English ‘Monandaeg’, which translates to ‘day of the moon’, and comes from Máni, the North Germanic Moon-god. &...
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One of the students has put in a huge amount of effort in completing Spellzone at least 3 times a week since his arrival with us in January. Looking at his scores after the latest GL testing, his standardised score has risen from 99 to 131. This is a truly phenomenal result. I just wanted to share the best result I have ever seen.
Terrie Penrose-Toms, Casterton College
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