You've Got Ketchup on Your Muumuu: An A-Z Guide to English Words from Around the World

By Eugene Ehrlich and Eugene Enrlich

Book Overview

From one of America's top wordsmiths, a lively survey of words from abroad that make English a truly international language. With dry wit and remarkable erudition, Eugene Ehrlich takes us on an eye-opening tour of our ever-changing language, showing us how English has, throughout its history, seamlessly sewn words from other languages into its original fabric. The language we call our own has in fact been culled from the languages of ancient invaders, such as the Romans, the Angles, the Saxons, the Jutes, and the French. Ehrlich's comprehensive research and vast lingual experience bring to light the origins of some of our most popular and well-used words. For example, graffiti is shown to come from the Italian word meaning "scratches." The word for one of our favorite French pastries, ?clair, means "lightning flash." And ketchup comes from the Chinese Ke-Jap, which means "fish sauce." Ehrlich illuminates the origins, purposes, and meanings of once-foreign words that have become part of the rich texture of our language.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0805061630
• ISBN13: 9780805061635
• Release Date: April 2000
• Publisher: Henry Holt & Company
• Length: 285 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 5.8" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

English, a truly international language.

This illuminating, well-researched and entertaining reference, introduces us to a comprehensive collection of foreign words and phrases that have, over many decades, been adopted, assimilated, and absorbed into our English lexicon. This book is written in a very clear, informative style, with the author's whimsical, humorous commentaries often adding a pleasurable and often witty touch to his discussion. The words are arranged alphabetically in a dictionary format, which facilitates browsing or consulting. Each entry includes the word's pronunciation, origin, original meaning, approximate date of introduction into English, and the meaning of its current usage. If you want to know how, when and where words like smorgasbord, chutzpah and paparazzi, and expressions like femme fatale and persona non grata made it into English, then, this is the book you need. It's a fun historical record of our vocabulary's most celebrated international contributors. --Reviewed by Maritza Volmar

HIGH MUCK-A-MUCK AT ITS BEST! (LOOK IT UP!)

Let's play vocabulary catch-up: The word "ketchup" is as American as burgers and fries, right? Wrong! The word is actually derived from the Chinese word "ke-jap," which means "fish sauce." In this fascinating volume, renowned linguist Eugene Ehrlich takes us on an eye-opening (and sometimes jaw-dropping) tour of how Americans have taken words from other languages and used them as our own. Kitsch? It's German, and means "trash." Ukulele? It's Hawaiian, and means (literally) "leaping flea." High muck-a-muck? It's Chinook and means "plenty to eat." The book is plenty of fun.

Excellent resource, and great for a laugh

I enjoyed this book for many reasons. Number one, the title alone is enough to make you want to buy it. How can you resist? I write every day (newspaper) and it helps to have a book like this. I am always looking for creative ways to express myself and this is what this does for you. I find it even more helpful that he supplies a guide for pronunciation so I don't have to sound like an idiot if I want to use one of these words in a conversation.