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i emailed this in, but got a response suggesting posting it instead, so here it goes:
Hi guys. I've got a question for y'all. Why are spanish firefighters called bomberos? It seems like bombing the fire would defeat the purpose, at least for non-Bradburians.
I've figured out this little bit:
"bomba" seems to be from the latin "bombus" and greek "bombos" for anything from a deep sound to a buzzing noise. (italian bombo = bumblebee)
(Latin and greek are rather dissimilar languages, are they not? I'm not familiar with any words that transferred between the two cultures besides obscenities. Is there something special about the word bombus that it transferred between greek and latin?)
So spanish "bomba" = pump or bomb, and presumably a bombero/firefighter would be pumping water rather than lobbing grenades. The evolution of bomba from meaning "noise" to meaning "explosive" makes sense. The big question is, how did "bomba" come to mean "pump"? Were spanish pumps named for the noise they generated? Or does it come from an entirely different word?
Thanks in advance for your help. I don't have much radio reception where I live, so if you answer this on air, please let me know in advance by email so I can be sure to drive into town and hear your answer. (Yes, y'all are famous beyond y'all's broadcast area...)
the DEUT
post script: i ran across the etymology of "go" versus "went". cool stuff!
Here's what I've found online:
La palabra ËœBomberoËœ viene del LatÃn y tiene su origen en la palabra ËœBombaËœ(Bombus), la cual ha tomado su nombre por el accionar de esas máquinas y ha sido adoptada como determinante del hombre que tiene como oficio Ëœtrabajar con una bomba para aguaËœ.
Es decir, Bombero es quien trabaja con bombas hidráulicas, puesto que en la antigüedad el accionar de estos aparatos, si bien eran rudimentarios, exigÃan dedicación y cuidado especial de los mismos. Por estas causas lo hacÃan determinados personas.
Cuando la aplicación de las bombas se hizo en forma sistemática para la extinción del fuego, la palabra Bombero fue impuesta a quienes manipulaban dichos elementos y posteriormente aceptada en forma universal incluso por los centros de lenguas como definición de las ˜personas que se dedican a combatir y extinguir incendios˜ utilizando bombas.
Here's the http://www.correo.com.uy/index.asp?codpag=detProd&smen=filatelia&idp=705&s=1
As for GO and WENT, I taught history of English last semester and my students were also stunned because so many words in Modern English carry with them so much history, which people don't even realize is there. I agree that it's cool stuff!
Martha Barnette
Grant Barrett
Grant Barrett
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