Roz's Random Ramblings

Roz Hirch
  • 5.0 (2)
  • HISTORY

I am a linguist and professional researcher who loves doing all kinds of research, especially about history. People sometimes ask me questions about language or history or various other things, and if I don't already know the answer, I do the research for them and explain it to them later. I decided to make a podcast out of some of the questions people have asked me, because if one person asked, then there must be a few more who asked or who would at least be interested, right? Join me as I dive into a wide variety of topics, focusing mainly on the history and language related to those items, from word origins to people's origins (genealogy) to art, science, culture, food, literature, animals... almost anything is fair game for me to ramble about.

Episodes

  1. Where do cookies come from?

    2D AGO

    Where do cookies come from?

    A wild and crazy ride through the history of cookies, discussing where they come from and how they got their name.

    19 min
  2. Who are my ancestors? Randy's ancestors, round 1

    APR 27

    Who are my ancestors? Randy's ancestors, round 1

    This episode changes things up a bit - got to be random! - by looking at a couple of generations from my brother-in-law's family tree. Specifically, his 14th and 15th great grandparents, who hung out in the court of the notorious Henry VIII. Think Henry's life and romances were crazy? Well, they were, but the Staffords, Nevilles, and Howards did their best to keep up with him. Take a closer look at the lives of a few nobles in the court of King Henry VIII, who also happen to be my brother-in-law Randy's ancestors.

    17 min
  3. How can green simultaneously refer to something good and bad?

    APR 27

    How can green simultaneously refer to something good and bad?

    Have you ever noticed that green often represents both good things and bad? Green likely makes you think of foliage and new growth, but it is also the color used to represent poisons and witches' brews. How did that happen? This episode looks at the history of the word green, focusing on how and why it has developed these dual meanings.

    18 min
  4. Why does everyone have lawns?

    APR 27

    Why does everyone have lawns?

    In this episode, I try to answer the question: Why does everyone have lawns? Which isn't true - some people don't - but there are certainly a lot of them. This episode looks at the etymology and history of lawns from a somewhat humorous angle to explore the popularity of lawns, both yesterday and today.

    19 min
  5. What's up with two, to, and too?

    APR 27

    What's up with two, to, and too?

    Ever wonder why "two, to, and too" sound the same, even though they're spelled differently and mean different things? This episode offers a somewhat whimsical look at an answer to the question with a deep dive into the history and phonology of the three function words. Hopefully as entertaining as it is informative.

    20 min
  • 5 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

I am a linguist and professional researcher who loves doing all kinds of research, especially about history. People sometimes ask me questions about language or history or various other things, and if I don't already know the answer, I do the research for them and explain it to them later. I decided to make a podcast out of some of the questions people have asked me, because if one person asked, then there must be a few more who asked or who would at least be interested, right? Join me as I dive into a wide variety of topics, focusing mainly on the history and language related to those items, from word origins to people's origins (genealogy) to art, science, culture, food, literature, animals... almost anything is fair game for me to ramble about.

Information

  • Creator
    Roz Hirch
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    5
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Roz Hirch 2026
  • Show Website
    Roz's Random Ramblings