Messages of other months can be read by clicking HERE.

Andes and Andys (09/09/03)

Names of Months (09/09/10)

Names of Days (09/09/14)

Hurricanes/Typhoons/Cyclones (09/09/18)

A Hymn for Him (09/09/22)

Tacks, Tax and Taxi (09/09/26)

Andes and Andys (09/09/03)

The Andes is one of the major mountain systems in the world, extending over 8000 kilometers in seven South American countries. It has many snow-capped peaks over 6,700 meters high, but its place at the beginning of today’s message is because the pronunciation of its name stimulated in my mind other names and words with the same pronunciation. How about you? Today’s question for you is: what names or words come to your mind when you hear the name of that mountain range? One of the “Andys” that will certainly be remembered by people my age is the one who joined Amos in the famous radio duo, “Amos’n Andy,” a very popular radio team fifty years ago. Now, my wife and I often view reruns of the Andy Griffith Show in which Andy is the sheriff of a small town and a stimulator of both humor and wisdom. Although “sandy” means “covered with sand” or “having characteristics similar to sand, ” I was surprised to find that there are two wives in our retirement community called “Sandy,” the nickname for “Sandra.” As I mentioned in the previous message, many people in the West do not know the meaning of their names or of the names they give their children. I was surprised to see the names of the Assistant Health Care Administrator and of one of the physical therapists in our community. Their names are Randy and Brandy, and I wonder if their parents knew the meaning of those names when they gave them to their children. Finally, I will confess that, since I have a sweet tooth, I think it is dandy when candy is handy. We are happy to have some handymen in our community who are able to make adjustments on things that need them. (1254)

Names of Months (09/09/10)

According to the Gregorian calendar, used by most countries in the world today, which is named for Pope Gregory XIII who promoted a reformed calendar in the 16th century, this ninth month of the year is called September. Attentive readers will recognize that the prefixes in the names of this month and the following months are related to the Latin words for the numbers 7, 8, 9 and 10. If you check a dictionary, you will find a number of other words listed with the same prefixes. A “septet,” for example, denotes a group of 7, and a “septennial” is an event that occurs every 7 years. The “ Septuagint,” a famous Greek translation of the Old Testament dating from the 3rd century before Christ, was given that name because it was reportedly done by 72 translators in 72 days. An “octet” is a group of 8 and an “octennial” recurs every 8 years. A “novena” designates the prayers and devotions for a special purpose, repeated for 9 consecutive days in the Roman Catholic Church. A “decade” is a period of 10 years; the “decimal system” is a number system using the base 10, and the “Decalogue” denotes “the Ten Commandments” given by God to the Jews as recorded in the 20th chapter of the Old Testament book of Exodus. In the old Roman calendar, a year was divided into 10 months, beginning with the spring month of March. In the Julian calendar, approved by Julius Caesar in the first century before Christ, 2 more months were added to the beginning of the year, but the names of the later months remained the same, so the names of the months from September to December include numerical implications that are incorrect. (1255)

Names of Days (09/09/14)

According to the creation story in the first chapter of the Bible, the world was created in six days and God, the Creator, rested on the 7th day. In most calendars now used around the world, months are divided into weeks of seven days, each of which is given a name. The English names for those seven days are related to the Latin or Norse names for the seven celestial bodies that were thought to revolve around the earth (sun, moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn) or to the deities of those “planets.” Sunday, the first day of the week, is considered by Christians to be “the Lord’s Day,” for it was on that day that “the Lord Jesus,” “the Son of God,” is reported to have risen from the dead. Sunday (or Sonday) is followed by moon day (Monday). Mars, the Roman god of war, was identified with the Norse god, Tiw, and the next day of the week was called Tiw’s day. The Norse god, Woden, was identified with the Roman god, Mercury, and formed the basis of Wednesday. Thor, the Norse god of thunder, was identified with the Roman god, Jupiter, and Thor’s Day was included in the week. The Norse goddess, Frigg, became identified with Venus, the Roman goddess of love, so Frigg’s day (Friday) was included in the list. And “Saturn’s Day” brought the week to a close. The names of the days of the week in Japanese are more obviously related to the heavenly bodies. If the yo~bi in Japanese is replaced by sei, meaning “star,” the relationship is clear. It is interesting that the English pronunciation of the days of the week is OK, except for Wednesday, in which the “d” is not pronounced. (1256)

Hurricanes/Typhoons/Cyclones (09/09/18)

Since our retirement from Japan in 1999, my wife and I have been living in the southern state of Florida on the East coast of the United States of America. The name of this state, related to the Spanish word for “flowery,” was given by the Spanish explorer, Ponce de Leon, who landed here in 1513 on Easter Sunday, the “Feast of Flowers.” Its nickname is “Sunshine State” and we consider the implications of both of these names to be correct. In this area, from June to November is called the “hurricane season.” That was the stimulation for the research for this message, which focuses on the storms called “hurricanes” or “typhoons” depending on the area in which they occur. According to my reference books, a “hurricane” is “a severe tropical cyclone . . . originating in the tropical regions of the Atlantic Ocean or the Caribbean Sea,” and a “typhoon” is “a severe tropical hurricane occurring in the Western Pacific or the China Sea.” Thus, the term used depends upon the area where the storm occurs. The storm occurring over the Atlantic Ocean is called a “hurricane.” An identical storm occurring over the Pacific Ocean is called a “typhoon,” and when occurring over the Indian Ocean, may be called a “tropical cyclone.” When I was in Japan, I thought the Japanese term for “typhoon” consisted of two Chinese characters meaning “big wind,” but I now find that the first character is a much more complicated one. In the ancient Sanskrit literature of India, we find this interesting observation, which should encourage people who view such strong winds to be humble: “The hurricane does not uproot grasses, which are pliant and bow low before it on every side. It is only the lofty trees that it attacks.” We are thankful that so far this year, no hurricanes have occurred during this hurricane season. (1257)

A Hymn for Him (09/09/22)

During the past month, I have become very much aware of the peculiar problems related to the understanding of the English language. Many inconsistencies and irregularities in the meaning and spelling of words were brought to my attention following the death of a “hearty” friend, a former officer of and resident in this retirement community. He “passed away” last week and his funeral service was held on the last day of the week. As we were singing a hymn at the funeral service, I was “struck” with the strange homophones: “hymn” and “him.” Most English words that begin with “hy” have a different pronunciation, but at the funeral service, we had him in mind as we sang the hymns. The hymn entitled “He Lives” was in reference to “Christ Jesus,” but we could imagine Scott joining us in the hymn that began with these words: “When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll, whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, ‘It is well, it is well with my soul.’” I thought that was an appropriate hymn for him. (1258)

Tacks, Tax and Taxi (09/09/26)

There are many activities in this retirement community for residents to become involved in that provide exercise for both body and mind. To inform or remind us of both regular activities and changes that occur, there are bulletin boards at certain places that have announcements attached with thumbtacks. Such tacks having a smooth, rounded head that can be pressed into place with the thumb, are very convenient, not only for attaching announcements but for many other uses as well. The word, “tack,” seems to have a Germanic origin. Although the pronunciation is the same, there is a big difference in meaning between such tacks and the tax we are required to pay to support our government. The English word, “tax,” is derived from a Latin word meaning “to handle” or “to touch.” Adding an “i” to “tax,” we produce the word “taxi.” “Taxi” is the shortened form of “taxicab,” an automobile that carries passengers for a fare. It is called a “taxicab” because in it, an instrument called a “taximeter” measures the distance traveled, the waiting time included and indicates the fare. This word is rooted in French. English words have a variety of different linguistic influences, which explains some of the irregularities involved. In Japanese, on the other hand, there are many words that have the same pronunciation but are based on different Chinese characters, so reading the words is often more understandable than hearing them. Every language has its own peculiarities and genuine communication requires more than historical or etymological explanations. Representatives of various countries and languages at meetings of the United Nations also need to consider the true meaning of true communication. (1259)