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founding
Jan 31Liked by Debra Esolen

Fascinating as always!

I’ve always wondered at the fact that our rain guard is rooted in the Latin word for shadow. Ironic that umbrella moved aside for what originally would have meant the same thing through a converse meaning (and which I assume must have entered later through French or Spanish?) the parasol… indeed, other languages have the -umbra word (ombrelle, sombrilla) as well as the more obvious latin derivatives (parasol, paraguas, parapluie) so why in our lovely anglic tongue have we never coined our ‘forain’ , or perhaps ‘frowater’? Mr. Esolen, do tell if thou knowest.

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