27 episodes

Do you ever wonder how and why things get their names? On Moniker: The Histories and Mysteries of Names, we'll dive into anything and everything related to names. If you're an onomastics aficionado, this is the place for you!

Moniker: The Histories and Mysteries of Names Megan Taylor

    • History
    • 5.0 • 2 Ratings

Do you ever wonder how and why things get their names? On Moniker: The Histories and Mysteries of Names, we'll dive into anything and everything related to names. If you're an onomastics aficionado, this is the place for you!

    Easter, Eoster & Ishtar

    Easter, Eoster & Ishtar

    Here comes Peter Cottontail! It's almost time for Easter! 

    But what does Easter mean? How did it get its name?

    Did the Catholics just piggy-back off a holiday for an ancient goddess??

    Let's "hunt" down the answer together! 

    • 20 min
    We Need to Talk About Kevin (Caoimhin)

    We Need to Talk About Kevin (Caoimhin)

    I bet you know a lot of Kevins, but when was the last time you saw a baby named Kevin?

    Today we explore Kevins journey from Celtic Saint to American scamp. Learn just how popular (or unpopular) this name really is!

    Sources:

    Articles
    Children's names: Why rich parents set the trend, not celebrities - BBC News

    The Ossianic Society on JSTOR 

    What’s In A Name: The Surprising Rise And Fall (And Rise) Of ‘Kevin’ | by The Establishment | The Establishment | Medium

    Saint Kevin | patron of Dublin | Britannica


    Saint Kevin - Glendalough - World Cultures European (irishcultureandcustoms.com)


    Gaelic Revival | Encyclopedia.com


    Trace your Irish roots - traditional Irish naming pattern (irishcentral.com)


    http://manchesterhistorian.com/2021/what-led-to-the-19th-century-gaelic-revival-by-erin-kilker/ 


    Irish Free State declared - HISTORY 


    Irish in Washington -- The Early Years (1840s to 1890) - HistoryLink.org


    Apparently, Some Countries Really Hate The Name ‘Kevin’ | HuffPost Weird News 


    The Strange German Disease Called "Kevinism": Can a Lame Name Mess Up Your Life? | Discover Magazine


    Digitized Records
    Annals of the Four Masters (ucc.ie) 


    The Annals of Ulster (ucc.ie) 


    Irish Genealogy


    Books

    • 17 min
    Oranges: Fruit or Color?

    Oranges: Fruit or Color?

    After a stupidly long hiatus we are back with more naming fun!

    Join us this episode for an in-depth look at the journey of orange, both the color and the fruit!

    Links:

    The Citrus Route Revealed: From Southeast Asia into the Mediterranean in: HortScience Volume 52 Issue 6 (2017) (ashs.org)


    orange | Search Online Etymology Dictionary (etymonline.com)


    The Origin of Oranges (arcgis.com)


    Oranges - Google Books


    Al Masudi – History of Islam


    William the Silent (mcgill.ca)


    House of Orange | European dynasty | Britannica


    Golden Fruit - Google Books


    Hesperides: history of the culture and use of citrus fruits : Tolkowsky, S. : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive


    Trading Posts and Fortifications on Genoese Trade Routes. From the Mediterranean to the Black Sea - UNESCO World Heritage Centre


    Orange | History, Geography, & Points of Interest | Britannica


    Francia Media:  Lorraine & Burgundy (friesian.com)


    Color or Fruit? On the Unlikely Etymology of “Orange” ‹ Literary Hub (lithub.com)


    Why does the Netherlands love orange? The full explainer – DutchReview


    Exploration and trade in Elizabethan England | The British Library (bl.uk)


    Spectrum - The Spectrum Of Light - Newton, Colors, Seven, and Experiment - JRank Articles


    Patriot Revolution | Encyclopedia.com


    Glorious Revolution - New World Encyclopedia


    https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-18769781

    • 20 min
    Did Shakespeare Invent Jessica?

    Did Shakespeare Invent Jessica?

    Ah the immortal Bard.  We can credit Shakespeare with many things: shaping the English language, bringing theatre to the common man, giving High School drama departments something to perform that's in the public domain.

    But can we credit Shakespeare for names like Jessica?

    We'll look at the complex (and racist) relationship between Britain and Judaism as we unravel the mystery behind  Shakespeare's Semitic ingenue.

    Sources:

    Articles:
    Barkey, K., & Katznelson, I. (2011). States, regimes, and decisions: why Jews were expelled from Medieval England and France. Theory and Society, 40(5), 475–503. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11186-011-9150-8

    Halio, J. L., & Gross, J. (1993). Shylock: Four Hundred Years in the Life of a Legend. Shakespeare Quarterly, 44(3), 364. https://doi.org/10.2307/2871425


    Books:
    Gross, K. (2006). Shylock Is Shakespeare (Annotated ed.). University of Chicago Press.

    Shapiro, J. (2016). Shakespeare and the Jews (twentieth anniversary edition). Columbia University Press.

    Websites:
    CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Giangiorgio Trissino (newadvent.org)

    www.etymologyonline.com

    Meet The Man Responsible For The Letter "J" - Dictionary.com


    Music:

    Market by PeriTune | http://peritune.com
    Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com
    Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
    https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

    Psalm 23 Toyohiko Santoh
    https://archive.org/details/cd_lute-music-from-the-netherlands_toyohiko-satoh 



    Bransle Gay Claude Gervais
    https://archive.org/details/lp_french-dances-of-the-renaissance-and-other_le-groupe-des-instruments-anciens-de-paris_0 

    • 14 min
    Iceland and Greenland

    Iceland and Greenland

    It's an old story:
    The Vikings gave Greenland and Iceland their names to fool people. But is that actually true?
    Grab and oar on the dragon boat as we sail to the icy heart of this naming mystery!

    Sources:

    Articles:
    A BRIEF HISTORY OF GREENLAND - Local Histories

    Debunking the Naming of Iceland: How the Island Got its Name | The Horse and the Norse (wordpress.com)
    Erik The Red – The Raving, Red-Haired Lunatic Who Settled Greenland (allthatsinteresting.com)
    Eric the Red - discover of Greenland (greenlandbytopas.com) 
    Facts about Greenland - Naalakkersuisut

    Books:
    Bugge, A. (2022). THE NATIVE GREENLANDER - A BLENDING OF OLD AND NEW. Arctic.

    History, C. (2018). Erik the Red: A Captivating Guide to the Viking Who Founded the First Norse Settlement in Greenland (Captivating History). CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.

    Palsson, H., & Edwards, P. (2007). The Book of Settlements: Landnamabok (U of M Icelandic Series). University of Manitoba Press.

    Seaver, K. A. (1997). The Frozen Echo: Greenland and the Exploration of North America, ca. A.D. 1000–1500 (1st ed.). Stanford University Press.

    Websites:
    www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca
    www.britannica.com 

    Music:
    Market by PeriTune | http://peritune.com
    Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com
    Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
    https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

    "Psalm 23" by Toyohiko Satoh Lute Music from the Netherlands, retrieved from archive.org
    https://archive.org/details/cd_lute-music-from-the-netherlands_toyohiko-satoh

    "Sækonungar" by Skald  Viking Memories, retrieved from archive.org 
    https://archive.org/details/skald-vikings_memories-vinyl

     

    • 15 min
    Princess Qajar: More than a Meme

    Princess Qajar: More than a Meme

    You've probably seen a meme circulating that shows the so-called "Princess Qajar." 

    It's a set of black and white photos showing an Iranian woman with a mustache, unibrow, and unusual clothes.  A typical caption reads something like: "this woman was a great beauty in her day. 13 men committed suicide after she spurned their advances!"

    We're meant to be shocked that this "uggo" could command such devotion. 

    But who is the real woman behind the pretty blatantly racist and sexist meme? 

    In this episode we dig into the lives of two women who saw Iran's attempted transformation from Western puppet to independent nation. 

    Esmat Al-Dawlha and Taj Al-Sultanah


    Sources:

    Articles:
    https://abitofhistoryblog.com/tag/esmat-al-dowleh/

    http://royal-splendor.blogspot.com/2018/07/princess-qajar.html

    https://positivenegativeimpact.com/princess-qajar

    https://historyofyesterday.com/the-beauty-symbol-from-the-19th-century-proves-that-
    beauty-is-determined-by-society-aa8e2a0260c0

    Books:
    Al-Saltaneh, T., Neshati, A., Amanat, A., & Vanzan, A. (2021). Crowning Anguish: Memoirs of a Persian Princess from the Harem to Modernity. Macmillan Publishers.

    Ingenito, D. (2020). Beholding Beauty Sadi of Shiraz and the Aesthetics of Desire in Medieval Persian Poetry (Brill Studies in Middle Eastern Literatures). BRILL.

    Keddie, N. R. (2012). Qajar Iran and the Rise of Reza Khan 1796–1925. Mazda Pub.

    Shah, N. A., Redhouse, J. W., Iran, S. O., & William, J. (2012). The diary of H.M. the Shah of Persia, during his tour through Europe in A.D. 1873. By J.W. Redhouse. A verbatim translation. Ulan Press.


    Websites:
    www.britannica.com
    www.qajarwomen.org
    www.biographypedia.com


    Music:
    Market by PeriTune | http://peritune.com
    Music promoted by https://www.free-stock-music.com
    Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
    https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

    Farda to miyaee by Houshmand Aghili
    https://www.easypersian.com/

    Psalm 23 by Toyohiko Santoh
    www.archive.org  

    • 14 min

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