h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Okay, I revise that - I'll believe Little Turkey was a real Cherokee Chief, Principal Chief no less, but I won't believe that's why people use the word 'turkey' as an epithet.

And that's interessting about the Tower of Babel, thanks!

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=turkey

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
turkey (n.)
1540s, originally "guinea fowl" (Numida meleagris), a bird imported from Madagascar via Turkey, and called guinea fowl when brought by Portuguese traders from West Africa. The larger North American bird (Meleagris gallopavo) was domesticated by the Aztecs, introduced to Spain by conquistadors (1523) and thence to wider Europe. The word turkey first was applied to it in English 1550s because it was identified with or treated as a species of the guinea fowl, and/or because it got to the rest of Europe from Spain by way of North Africa, then under Ottoman (Turkish) rule. Indian corn was originally turkey corn or turkey wheat in English for the same reason.

The Turkish name for it is hindi, literally "Indian," probably influenced by Middle French dinde (c.1600, contracted from poulet d'inde, literally "chicken from India," Modern French dindon), based on the then-common misconception that the New World was eastern Asia.
After the two birds were distinguished and the names differentiated, turkey was erroneously retained for the American bird, instead of the African. From the same imperfect knowledge and confusion Melagris, the ancient name of the African fowl, was unfortunately adopted by Linnæus as the generic name of the American bird. [OED]
The New World bird itself reputedly reached England by 1524 at the earliest estimate, though a date in the 1530s seems more likely. The wild turkey, the North American form of the bird, was so called from 1610s. By 1575, turkey was becoming the usual main course at an English Christmas. Meaning "inferior show, failure," is 1927 in show business slang, probably from the bird's reputation for stupidity. Meaning "stupid, ineffectual person" is recorded from 1951. Turkey shoot "something easy" is World War II-era, in reference to marksmanship contests where turkeys were tied behind a log with their heads showing as targets. To talk turkey (1824) supposedly comes from an old tale of a Yankee attempting to swindle an Indian in dividing up a turkey and a buzzard as food.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

TL;DR The American wild 'turkey' is misnamed for... reasons but the epithet "turkey" is a reference to the bird and it's perceived stupidity.

See that superfluous apostrophe? It's actually a comma that meandered away from its rightful place behind "reasons".

Thos sneaky apostrophes...I think they have a union...

ITI is largely correct, but his information is significantly incomplete. He had been more-or-less forced out of Greece by the Spartans, who didn't like him. Furthermore, he didn't become an advisor to Xerxes -- the king who attempted to invade Greece -- but rather to Artaxerxes, his son.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Themistocles#Aftermath_of_the_Persian_invasion

...and a turkey shoot is a marksmanship competition
in which the best shot wins the top prize, a turkey.
Food for several people for several days.

Like Robin Hood who won the prize beef at the fair
Davie Crocket used to enter turkey shoots and give
the prize to the prettiest gal in the village and have
her cook up a feast for his friends and then pack up
a few samitches for laters.


~jwf~

He did? I wonder what Mrs Crockett thought of that.

Mrs Crockett was his hat.
http://www.hypnospiralcomic.com/?webcomic_post=coonskin-cap
http://youtu.be/qvrSRvniu_A
http://video.pbs.org/video/1512019021/

~jwf~

Well, if you're going to involve Oliver Sacks...

For centuries, it was widely believed that beavers would gnaw off their own testicles when threatened. That beavers do not have external testicles did little to counter this belief.

http://www.wired.com/2014/10/fantastically-wrong-people-used-think-beavers-bit-testicles/

Liquid Paper was invented by Mike Nesmith's (of The Monkees) mum. She developed it because she wasn't a good typist and needed a way to correct errors. In the early days Mike helped her to fill the bottles.

Using ingredients commonly found in any kitchen.

(Mike Nesmith and his mother are small legends here in Texas.)


"Save the Texas Prairie Chicken!"

From what I read recently, she started with tempura waterbase paint which she applied with a water colour paintbrush. When her friends asked her for some she realised that it could be a commercially viable product. She then paid a chemist $200 to come up with a solvent-based formula which she patented under the name 'Liquid Paper'.

When I was at college, longer ago than I care to admit, we didn't ask to use a friend's Tippex. We always asked for their Liquid Paper. Bette Nesmith's influence extended all the way to Coventry, UK!

>> ..was widely believed that beavers would gnaw off their own
testicles when threatened <<

Now that is an amazing tale. That it persisted for millennia
adds emphatically to the total uselessness of such info.
Nice one.

Must confess the article has given me pause regarding vanilla
flavourings. Especially French vanilla. But that's just prejudice.

~jwf~

I enjoyed how the Vatican declared beaver and capibara to be fish for consumption on Fridays.

Bill Bailey, a British comedian was explaining how he was pretty much a vegetarian. Though he did eat fish... and duck, because they swam on the water that the fish were in... and lamb because they often were seen near the water where fish were swimming.

I'd have to be extremely threatened before I would consider gnawing off my own testicles.

I would also need to be an awful lot more flexible.

PP.

>> more flexible <<

Indeed, if you could, you most likely wouldn't.


~jwf~