hidden farts, silent but deadly. The word fart,
considered by many folks to be vulgar, is here
to stay, as is the reality behind it. The word
is classified as onomatopoeia, which means the
sound of the word reflects what it is defining.
Every language that I know has a word for it.
They all tend to imitate what they hear, as the
sound, a sort of a... I know that some people
consider etymology the second most dismal science,
but every once in a while a fascinating revelation
bursts forth. This happened to me recently as
I looked up a word. The word was the seemingly
innocent word, Partridge. Now, Partridge is our
members of the present family. They eat insects,
berries, seeds, They nest on the ground. They
weigh less than a pound, but they can run very
quickly, which saves them from many a predator.
But then came the shocker. The name Partridge
derived from a Greek verb, which from time immemorial
has meant to fart. It's not so much this particular
bird is prone to fatulence. It's just that the
noise that it makes as it flies away reminded
some people as a fart. That has to be some takeoff.
Well intrigued, I decided to do a wildcard search.
on etymologies containing break wind, fart, flatulence.
That's when a second surprise erupted. The German
district of Westphalia was known for its pumpernickel,
a coarse black bread not always fully appreciated.
In fact, an early modern German pumper meant
fart as the Oxford English Dictionary delicately
puts it, this type of bread was probably so -called
either on account of its being difficult to digest
and causing flatulence, or in a more general
illusion to its hardness and poor quality. Hidden
farts also lurk in the word feisty, aggressive,
and touchy, like au perdon, a fungus puffball,
translated as Wolf's fart. Oh no, poor Don. A
genus of thistles. Translated as donkey fart.
Pedicule. A louse. Translated as small fart.
And poop. From a German verb meaning to fart.
Now I can't wait to have a partridge sandwich
on Pumpernickel. Pass the bino, please.