The Secret Life of Words - by Henry Hitchings (Paperback)
Similar Products
Products of same category from the store
All
Product info
<p/><br></br><p><b> About the Book </b></p></br></br>"The Secret Life of Words" is a wide-ranging account not only of the history of English language and vocabulary, but also of how words witness history, reflect social change, and remind societies of their past.<p/><br></br><p><b> Book Synopsis </b></p></br></br><p>AN <i>ECONOMIST</i> BOOK OF THE YEAR <p/><i>The Secret Life of Words </i>is a wide-ranging account of the transplanted, stolen, bastardized words we've come to know as the English languag. It's a history of English as a whole, and of the thousands of individual words, from more than 350 foreign tongues, that trickled in gradually over hundreds of years of trade, colonization, and diplomacy. Henry Hitchings narrates the story from the Norman Conquest to the present day, chronicling the English language as a living archive of human experience. <p/>A SAMPLE OF THE THOUSANDS OF STORIES BEHIND THE WORDS: <br>- Alcatraz Island was named by a Spanish explorer who arrived in 1775 to find the island covered with pelicans, or <i>alcatraces</i>. And alcatraces? The word goes back to the Arabic <i>al-qadus</i>, which was a bucket used in irrigation that resembled the bucket beaks of pelicans. <p/>- What does a walnut have to do with walls? The word comes from the Old English walhnutu, meaning foreign nut. They were originally grown in Italy and imported, and the northern Europeans named them to distinguish them from the native hazelnut. <p/>- A crayfish is not a fish. The name comes from the old French word <i>crevice</i>, through the Old German <i>crebiz </i>and the modern French <i>ecrevisse</i>. The fish part is just the result of a mishearing. <p/><i>The Secret Life of Words </i>is a wide-ranging chronicle of how words witness history, reflect social change, and remind us of our past.</p><p/><br></br><p><b> Review Quotes </b></p></br></br><br><p>"Hitchings here provides a colorful, thematic history of the English language . . . Hitchings is a fine writer with an eye for the illustrative detail . . . With ninety-plus pages of notes, sources, and useful indexes, this is fine choice for libraries and a 'smorgasbord' for language aficionados. Highly recommended." --<i>E. L. Battistella, Choice</i> <p/>"A rich and readable history." --<i>The Boston Globe</i> <p/>"Astonishing . . . Every page of <i>The Secret Life of Words </i>is stuffed with rewards. . .Painstakingly detailed, closely argued and suffused with a contagious enthusiasm." --<i>Daily Telegraph (UK)</i> <p/>"A galloping history of English-speaking people and lists of words they have borrowed or invented." --<i>The New York Sun</i> <p/>"Filled with fascinating nuggets." --<i>The Independent (UK)</i> <p/>"A delightful book." --<i>The Roanoke Times</i></p><br><p/><br></br><p><b> About the Author </b></p></br></br><p><b>HENRY HITCHINGS </b>was born in 1974. He is the author of <i>Defining the World </i>and has contributed to many newspapers and magazines.</p>
Price History
Cheapest price in the interval: 18.99 on November 8, 2021
Most expensive price in the interval: 18.99 on December 20, 2021
Price Archive shows prices from various stores, lets you see history and find the cheapest. There is no actual sale on the website. For all support, inquiry and suggestion messagescommunication@pricearchive.us