Omniglot News (11/10/26)

11th October 202611th October 2026 By Simon

Omniglot News

Here’s the latest news from the world of Omniglot.

New language pages:

Bowili (Tuwuli), a Kwa language spoken in the Volta Region in southeastern Ghana.
Alagwa (Alaagwa’isa), a South Cushitic language spoken in the Dodoma Region in central Tanzania.
Lela (c’Lélà), a Northwest Kainji language spoken in the northwest of Nigeria.

New constructed script: Phoenixian, which was created by Dave Kos to write the constructed Phoenixian language, and also English.

Phoenixian Script

New constructed script: Dual Tone, which was invented by Grace Sanon as a colour-based alphabet that can be used English and other languages.

Sample text in Dual Tone

New numbers pages:

Kulango (Nkuraeng), a Gur language spoken in Ivory Coast and Ghana.
Musi (Basé Musi), a Malayic language spoken mainly in South Sumatra province in Indonesia.
Mortlockese (kapsen Mwoshulók) a Micronesian language spoken mainly in the Mortlock Islands in Micronesia.

In this week’s Adventure in Etymology, entitled Furnished Performance, we find out what connects the words furnish and perform.

It’s also available on Instagram and TikTok.

On the Omniglot blog this week we find out what connects pillows to dust in a post called Dusty Pillows, and there’s the usual Language Quiz. See if you guess what language this is:

Here’s a clue: this language is spoken in Guatemala.

The mystery language in last week’s language quiz was Gagauz (Gagauz dili / Gagauzça), a Western Oghuz Turkic language spoken mainly in Moldova, Ukraine and Bulgaria.

On the Celtiadur blog this week there’s a new post about words for Seaweed and related things in Celtic languages.

For more Omniglot News, see:
https://www.omniglot.com/news/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/omniglot/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100046466483286

You can also listen to this podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, TuneIn and Podchaser.

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

Adventures in Etymology – Furnished Performance

10th October 202610th October 2026 By Simon

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In this Adventure in Etymology we find out what connects the words furnish and perform.

To furnish [ˈfɜːnɪʃ / ˈfɝnɪʃ] means to provide a place with furniture, or other equipment, to supply or give (something), or to supply (somebody) with something.

It comes from Middle English furnishen (to fit out or equip, to provide or furnish), from Old French from fornir (to provide, carry out, discharge), from Frankish *frumjan (to accomplish, carry out), from Proto-Germanic *frumjaną (to perform, promote, accomplish), from PIE *promo- (front, forward), from *pro- (toward, forward) [source].

To perform means to do (something) in front of an audience, such as acting or music, often in order to entertain, to function, to work, to behave in certain ways, and various other things.

It comes from the same Frankish and Proto-Germanic roots as furnish, via Middle English parformen (to execute, carry out, perform, effect, finish), Anglo-Norman parformir and Old French parfornir [source].

Other words from the some Proto-Germanic roots include fournir (to supply, provide, furnish) in French, Furnier (veneer) in German, фанера (fanera – plywood, sound track) in Russian, fornecer (to supply, provide, furnish) in Portuguese, and form and furniture in English [source].

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the Celtiadur blog.

Omniglot News (04/10/26)

4th October 20264th October 2026 By Simon

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Omniglot News

Here’s the latest news from the world of Omniglot.

New language pages:

Kanembu (Kanembou / كَنٜݦُ), a Western Saharan language spoken in southeastern Chad.
Teda (Tedaga), a Western Saharan language spoken in Chad, Libya and Niger.
Afade (Afaɗə), a Chadic language spoken in northern Cameroon and northeastern Nigeria.

New numbers page: Bowili (Tuwili), a Kwa language spoken in the Volta Region in southeastern Ghana.

New: Time, Family words and Colours pages in Plains Cree (ᓀᐦᐃᔭᐍᐏᐣ / nēhiyawēwin), an Algonquian language spoken in Canada and the USA.

New colours page: Polish (polski), a Western Slavic language spoken mainly in Poland.

In this week’s Adventure in Etymology, entitled Tasteful Taxis, we find out what connects the words taxi, task, tax and taste.

It’s also available on Instagram and TikTok.

On the Omniglot blog this week we find out what links the European wryneck (a type of bird) with spells and charms in a post called Birds of Ill Omen, and there’s the usual Language Quiz. See if you guess what language this is:

Here’s a clue: this language is spoken mainly in Moldova, Ukraine and Bulgaria.

The mystery language in last week’s language quiz was Suwawa, a Philippine language spoken in Gorontalo Province on Sulawesi Island in Indonesia.

On the Celtiadur blog this week there’s a new post about words for Barley and related things in Celtic languages.

For more Omniglot News, see:
https://www.omniglot.com/news/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/omniglot/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100046466483286

You can also listen to this podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, TuneIn and Podchaser.

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

Adventures in Etymology – Tasteful Taxis

3rd October 20263rd October 2026 By Simon

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In this Adventure in Etymology we find out what connects the words taxi, task, tax and taste.

A taxi [ˈtaksɪj / ˈtæksi] is a vehicle, usually a car, that may be hired for single journeys by members of the public, particularly one with an automated meter to calculate the fare.

As a verb, to taxi means to move an aircraft on the ground under its own power, or to travel or transport by taxi. The aircraft moving sense comes from a slang term for training aircraft practicing ground operations, which appeared to move around like taxis.

Taxi is an abbreviation of taximeter cab from French taximètre (taximeter), from German Taxameter (taximeter), from Medieval Latin taxa (tax, charge) and -meter (device to measure a certain property) [source].

A taximeter is a device installed in a taxi that calculates the fare based upon distance travelled and waiting time. It is often abbreviated to meter [source].

Taxa comes from Latin taxō (to feel, charge, rate, judge), from PIE *teh₂g- (to touch, grasp, take with the hand) [source].

A cabriolet (carriage)

Cab is a clipping of cabriolet (a car or carriage with a retractable or folding top), which comes from French cabriolet (a convertible car, a cabriolet carriage), from Italian cabriola (horse caper), from Latin capreolus (a roe deer), from PIE *kápros (billy goat [source].

Words from the PIE root *teh₂g- (to touch, grasp, etc) possibly include tage (to take, get, catch, charge) in Danish, taxeren (to evaluate, appraise) in Dutch, taxa (fee, tax, rate) in Portuguese, teimlo (to feel, touch) in Welsh, and tack, tact, take, tangent, task, taste, tax and thwack in English [source].

Words from the PIE root *kápros (billy goat) possibly include gafr (goat) in Welsh, gabhar (goat) in Irish, hafur (billy goat) in Icelandic, kauris (deer) in Finnish, chevron (rafter) in French, and haver (to talk foolishly, to chatter) in Scots [source].

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the Celtiadur blog.

Omniglot News (27/09/26)

27th September 202628th September 2026 By Simon

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Omniglot News

Here’s the latest news from the world of Omniglot.

New language pages:

Eipo (Lik Yuke), an Eastern Mek language spoken in the Highland Papua province in eastern Indonesian.
Tontemboan, a North Minahasan language spoken in northern Sulawesi in Indonesia.
Meru (Kĩmĩĩrũ), a Northeast Bantu language spoken in central Kenya.

New adapted script: Cyrillic-Kiswahili (Кисирили-Кису’ахили), a way to write Swahili with the Cyrillic script devised by Myles Webley.

Sample text in Cyrillic-Kiswahili

New numbers pages:

Michif, a mixed language combining Cree and French spoken in Canada and the USA.
Meru (Kĩmĩĩrũ), a Northeast Bantu language spoken in central Kenya.

New phrases pages:

Michif, a mixed language combining Cree and French spoken in Canada and the USA.
Meru (Kĩmĩĩrũ), a Northeast Bantu language spoken in central Kenya.

New Tower of Babel translations:

Meru (Kĩmĩĩrũ), a Northeast Bantu language spoken in central Kenya.
Livvi-Karelian (livvin kieli), a Finnic language spoken in northwest Russia and southeast Finland.
Eipo (Lik Yupe), an Eastern Mek language spoken in Highland Papua Province in eastern Indonesian.

In this week’s Adventure in Etymology, entitled Wending One’s Way, we wend our way through the origins of the word wend and find out what links the Vandals with the Mediterranean Sea and Andalusia in Spain.

It’s also available on Instagram and TikTok.

On the Omniglot blog this week we find out what slow music has to do with being at ease in a post called At Ease, and there’s the usual language quiz. See if you guess what language this is:

Here’s a clue: this language belongs to the Philippine language family, but isn’t spoken in the Philippines.

The mystery language in last week’s language quiz was Maliseet-Passamaquoddy, an Eastern Algonquian language spoken in New Brunswick in Canada and Maine in the USA.

On the Celtiadur blog this week there’s a new post about words for Suction and related things in Celtic languages.

For more Omniglot News, see:
https://www.omniglot.com/news/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/omniglot/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100046466483286

You can also listen to this podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, TuneIn and Podchaser.

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

Adventures in Etymology – Wending One’s Way

26th September 202626th September 2026 By Simon

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In this Adventure in Etymology we wend our way through the origins of the word wend.

Wend [wɛnd] means to direct (one’s way or course), to pursue one’s way, or to proceed upon some course or way, and used to mean to turn, to change, to adapt, to veer, to pass away, to disappear, to depart or to vanish.

It usually appears in phrases like ‘to wend one’s way’, for example, We wended our weary way westward. The modern past tense form of wend is wended, however it used to be went, which became the past tense of the verb to go.

Wend comes from Middle English wenden (to walk, to travel, to move, to leave, to sail), from Old English wendan (to turn, change, translate, go, depart, happen), from Proto-West Germanic *wandijan (to turn), from Proto-Germanic *wandijaną (to turn), from *windaną (to wind, wrap) from PIE *wendʰ- (to wind, turn) [source].

Words from the same roots include wandern (to hike, migrate, wander) in German, vende (to invite, call, welcome) in Danish, wędrować (to wander, roam) in Polish, vanne (hoop, band, rim) in Finnish, and guantlet, wand, to wander, to wind and possibly and vandal in English [source].

The word vandal (a person who needlessly destroys, defaces, or damages things, especially other people’s property), comes from the Vandals, a group of Germanic peoples who are known for sacking Rome in 455 AD/CE [source].

Their name comes from Proto-Germanic *wandilaz (to wander, a Vandal), from *wandōną (to wander), from PIE *wendʰ- (to wind, turn) [source]. Alternatively, Vandal may come from PIE *wanđ- (water), which is also the root of Old English name for the Mediterranean Sea: Wendelsǣ (“Vandal sea”) [source].

Andalusia, a region in southern Spain, might also get it’s name from the Vandals. It comes from Medieval Latin Andalusia, from Arabic الأندلس [al.ʔan.da.lus], possibly from Vulgar Latin *Vandalicia (“land of the Vandals”) or from Vandalic *Wandalitia / *Vandalitia (“land of the Vandals”) [source].

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the Celtiadur blog.

Omniglot News (20/09/26)

20th September 202620th September 2026 By Simon

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Omniglot News

Here’s the latest news from the world of Omniglot.

New language pages:

Ahwai (indùn), a Plateau language spoken in Kaduna State in central Nigeria.
Gokana (Gòkánà), an East Ogoni language spoken in Rivers State in southern Nigeria.
Hasha (Hàshà), an Alumic language spoken in Nasarawa State in the North Central region of Nigeria.

New constructed script: Aksara Varadun, an alternative way to write Indonesian created by Zafran Al Fathan.

Sample text in Aksara Varadun

New numbers page: Gokana (Gòkánà), an East Ogoni language spoken in Rivers State in southern Nigeria.

New phrases page Nyamwezi, a Bantu language spoken in western Tanzania.

New Tower of Babel translations:

Mongo (Ngiembɔɔn), a Bamileke language spoken in the West Region in southwestern Cameroon.
Hanunoo (Hanunó’o), a South Mangyan language spoken in Mindoro in the Philippines.
Loma (Löömàgòòi), a Southwestern Mande language spoken in northern Liberia
Maiadomu, a Western Oceanic language spoken in Milne Bay Province in Papua New Guinea.
Makhuwa (Emakhuwa), a Bantu language spoken in Mozambique and Tanzania.

In this week’s Adventure in Etymology, entitled Gracefully Pleasing, we uncover the gratefully pleasing roots of the word grace.

It’s also available on Instagram and TikTok.

On the Omniglot blog this week we find out links a New World monkey, a type of cloak, an order of friars and a type of coffee in a post entitled Monks, Monkeys & Coffee, and there’s the usual language quiz. See if you guess what language this is:

Here’s a clue: this language is spoken in Canada and the USA.

The mystery language in last week’s language quiz was Tacana, a Western Tacanan language spoken in La Paz Department in northwestern Bolivia.

On the Celtiadur blog this week there’s a new post about words for Service and related things in Celtic languages.

For more Omniglot News, see:
https://www.omniglot.com/news/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/omniglot/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100046466483286

You can also listen to this podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, TuneIn and Podchaser.

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

Adventures in Etymology – Gracefully Pleasing

19th September 202619th September 2026 By Simon

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In this Adventure in Etymology we uncover the gratefully pleasing roots of the word grace.

As a noun grace [ɡɹeɪs] can mean:

Charming, pleasing qualities.
A short prayer of thanks before or after a meal.
Elegant movement; elegance of movement; balance or poise.
Favor, sanction or beneficence.

As a verb to grace can mean:

To adorn; to decorate; to embellish and dignify.
To dignify or raise by an act of favour; to honour.
To supply with heavenly grace.

It comes from Middle English grace [ˈɡraː(t)sə] (the grace of God, luck, destiny, niceness, goodwill), from Old French grace (grace, favour, elegance), from Latin grātia (grace, thankfulness, thanks, influnce), from grātus (pleasing, dear, grateful), from Proto-Italic *gʷrātos (grateful, thankful) from PIE *gʷr̥H-tó-s (praised), from *gʷerH- (to praise, elevate) [source].

Words from the same roots include grazie (thank you) in Italian, grish (to invite, call, welcome) in Albanian, barn (opinion, view, judgement) in Welsh, bràth (judgement, destruction) in Scottish Gaelic, and agreement, bard, congratulate, grateful, gratitude and gratuity in English [source].

Incidentally, there were several other words for grace in Middle English, which included:

held(e) [ˈheːld(ə)] = favour, grace, good will, duty, which is related to the Dutch word houden (to keep, care for, hold, love, like), and hold in Modern English [source].
este [ˈɛːst(ə)] = grace, favour, pleasure, fun, delicacy, which is related to the Icelandic word ást (love) [source].
ore [ˈɔ̝ːr(ə)] (honour, respect, grace, favour, respite), which is related to the German word Ehre (honour, credit) [source].

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the Celtiadur blog.

Omniglot News (13/09/26)

13th September 2026 By Simon

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Omniglot News

Here’s the latest news from the world of Omniglot.

New language pages:

Koyra Chiini (koyra ciini / كࣷيْرَ ٺِينِ), a Songhay language spoken mainly in the Tombouctou Region in southern Mali.
Korandje (Kwạṛa n dzyəy), a Northern Songhay language spoken in Béchar Province in the northwest of Algeria.
Vagla, a Southern Gur language spoken in the Savannah Region in northern Ghana.

New constructed script: Ayneha, an alphabet created by Mahamadou Issiaka Maiga for the Songhay languages of Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and Benin.

Sample text in Ayneha

New constructed script: Pogi, an alternative way to write Indonesian, Malay and other languages created by Marcus Tzeng.

Sample text in Pogi

New numbers page:

Mpade, a Chadic language spoken in the northern Cameroon and western Chad.
Vagla, a Southern Gur language spoken in the Savannah Region in northern Ghana.

New Tower of Babel translations:

Ngiemboon (Ngiembɔɔn), a Bamileke language spoken in the West Region in southwestern Cameroon.
Bhunjia, an Eastern Indo-Aryan language spoken in Odisha and Chhattisgarh in eastern India.
Nyamwezi (Kinyamwezi), a Bantu language spoken in the Kigoma, Rukwa and Tabora regions in western Tanzania.
Vagla, a Southern Gur language spoken in the Savannah Region in northern Ghana.

In this week’s Adventure in Etymology, entitled Beaming Trees, we discover what links the word beam with words for tree.

It’s also available on Instagram and TikTok.

On the Omniglot blog this week we find out what links a type of pastry with lightning, flashes and sparkles in a post entitled Lightning Pastries, and there’s the usual language quiz. See if you guess what language this is:

Here’s a clue: this language is spoken in Bolivia.

The mystery language in last week’s language quiz was Tindi (Идараб мицци), a Northeast Caucasian language spoken in Dagestan in the Russian Republic.

On the Celtiadur blog this week there’s a new post about words for He, She, It and related pronouns in Celtic languages.

For more Omniglot News, see:
https://www.omniglot.com/news/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/omniglot/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100046466483286

You can also listen to this podcast on: Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, TuneIn and Podchaser.

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

Adventures in Etymology – Beaming Trees

12th September 202612th September 2026 By Simon

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In this Adventure in Etymology we discover what links the word beam with words for tree.

Meanings of beam [ˈbiːm] include any large piece of timber or iron long in proportion to its thickness, and prepared for use; one of the transverse members of a ship’s frame on which the decks are laid; a ray or collection of approximately parallel rays emitted from the sun or other luminous body.

It comes from Middle English be(e)m [bɛ̝ːm] (beam, pole, antler, tree), from Old English bēam [bæɑːm] (tree, beam, gallows), from Proto-West Germanic *baum (tree, beam), from Proto-Germanic *bagmaz (tree, beam), possibly from PIE *bʰuH- (to become, grow, appear) [source].

Words from the same Proto-Germanic roots include Baum (tree, boom) and beamen (to beam, teleport, project) in German (borrowed from English, popularised by Star Trek), bom (bar, barrier, beam) in Danish, boom (tree, beam, mast) in Dutch, puomi (boom, barrier, pole) in Finnish, boom in English [source].

Incidentally, in Middle English there were several words for tree, including tre (tree, plants, wood), bem (beam, a set of scales, antler, tree) and arbre (tree). The first two come from Old English and Proto-Germanic, while arbre comes from Old French arbre (tree).

Related words in English include arboretum (a place where many varieties of tree are grown for research, educational, and ornamental purposes), arboreal (tree-like, relating to trees) [source].

If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via PayPal or Patreon, or contribute to Omniglot in other ways.

Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with Blubrry Podcast Hosting, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code omniglot.

I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the Omniglot Blog, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the Celtiadur blog.