The alphabet was known as Christ-cross-row because the row of letters was preceded by a character resembling a Maltese cross.
When an illiterate person was required to sign his name he would print the Christ-cross as his mark.
Eventually the first syllable was reduced and the word crisscross entered our language meaning to cross with lines. [more…]
Have you ever thought to curry favour with your boss? Did you think it had something to do with inviting her to share a spicy Indian meal?
You might be surprised to know it has more to do with grooming a chestnut horse!
The expression comes from the less commonly known meaning of curry – ‘to [more…]
If you’re ‘dressed to the nines’ it doesn’t mean that you have nine layers of clothes on!
It actually means you are dressed very smartly or elaborately.
This phrase dates from the 18th century, and was already in use when Robert Burns used it in a poem in 1796, as ‘Twad please me to [more…]
When Albert married his first cousin, Queen Victoria, it was a match of true love.
Francis Albert Augustus Charles Emmanuel was the second son of Ernest, duke of Saxe-Coburg, and Louise, daughter of Duke Augustus of Saxe-Coburg-Altenburg.
He was not initially popular with the people of Britain and was always in the background of public life. [more…]
A boy with a six-shooter in his hand – he wreaked havoc in the Wild West.
William McCarty, who took on the name William H. Bonney, and was also known as Kid Antrim, was one of the most notorious gunmen of the American South West.
Born in New York in 1859, he grew up in Silver [more…]
Did you know that the pneumatic tyre was invented by a veterinarian?
Scottish veterinarian, John Boyd Dunlop, began experimenting with an air-filled tube when it was recommended that his son take up cycling for exercise. The bumpy cobbled streets made cycling quite uncomfortable and Dunlop thought he would find a way to soften the ride.
He [more…]
Flaming red hair gave the Viking Eric Thorvaldson his well-known nickname.
Eric (or Erik) was a Norwegian-born mariner, who became the first European to explore Greenland, though it seems other Norsemen had been there before him. He named it Greenland to indicate that it was more visually appealing that Iceland.
Eric was escaping murder charges in [more…]
Amongst the younger generation, it is fairly safe to say that Eva Perón is known primarily as the woman Madonna portrayed in the musical film Evita.
Argentinians will agree however, that there was more to Perón than a movie and the following synopsis of her life is merely the tip of the iceberg.
María Eva Duarte [more…]
Shaka kaSenzangakhonawas Zulu chief from 1818 – 1828. He changed the face of southern Africa by setting in motion the Mfecane and uniting the Zulu clans.
The Mfecane or ‘the crushing’, as the period became known, was a time of warfare and forced migrations. Zulu warriors, led by Shaka conquered and subjugated those in their [more…]
