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The thyme is nigh

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 November 2008

Abstract

Some religious etymologies in English.

Whatever religious beliefs we hold or do not hold, there is no denying the fact that all cultures are affected to a greater or lesser degree by religion. Whether or not we attend church on a Sunday, the mosque on a Friday or the synagogue on the Sabbath the language we use during the rest of the week will be peppered with words and phrases which can be traced back to religious rites and practices of one sort or another. In the case of English, which has absorbed some of the vocabulary of most of the main religions in the world, the dominant influence has to be Christianity. And because the early church texts and documents were frequently written in, and heavily dependant upon, Latin and ancient Greek their influence is still detected in many of the religious and cultural references we make in everyday speech.

Type
Original Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

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