Howdy, and here some thoughts of origins:

>"Threshold" is one word with one h, all the way back to Anglo-Saxon
>when it was spelled prex-; and the etymologists do not know what
>the origin of the "-old" is, but nobody thinks it comes from "hold."

Many origins, but most to the making of noise, stamping, crackling, etc.
first origin - prehistoric German has the first element as "making noise"
and the second element as "to guard" also "to grasp".  All very interesting
in light of our definitions (legal and common) and philosophies regarding
entry and home.
>
>"Trench mouth" was identified in 1896 by a Frenchman J. H. Vincent
>(1862-1950) and described in Lancet in 1904.

The French "trenchier" is from the Latin "truncare", to mutilate,  first
used to refer to the bobbing of trees but also used to refer to
dismemberment by Catullus.  We can assume a certain amount of stench to the
"corpori truncare" left on the battlefield.  Not many people know this.

>On this list it would be a better idea to have a competition
>for the cleverest fake etymology.  I will give one from the 1940s,
>not as a competitive entry, but to illustrate what I have in mind.
>
>"Lunatic": from "luna" = moon, "attic" = top story,
>hence a lunatic is one who is moony in his top story.

French:  lunatigue.  From lunaticus: "living on the moon".... beware the
full monty.  Also. OE "loonatic" (and Ken knows this) those that dwell in
waterclosets. Again a curious connection between full moons, tight spaces
and sanity.


Our word is our bond,
Best,
Leland