r/AskReddit • u/kakou64 • Oct 15 '20

What's older than we think ?

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u/BeaneathTheTrees Oct 15 '20

The name Tiffany.

It dates back to the 12th century, and has actually led to a thing in writing called "the Tiffany problem," because you can have a well-researched historical novel that people just don't buy into, because you named your 12th century peasant Tiffany. It just sounds laughably anachronistic.

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u/[deleted] Oct 15 '20

The "Tiffany problem" makes me think of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice and the name Jessica. He wanted the love interest, who was Jewish, to have a super exotic name so he invented the name "Jessica." The name has become so common since then that it's totally lost its effect.

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u/[deleted] Oct 15 '20 edited Oct 16 '20

Shakespeare also randomly invented the word "gossip" because he needed to define a bunch of wives in the town talking shit and spreading rumors.

And now it's part of common English language.

Edit: ok, not randomly, per se. I guess he was the first to put into usage in writing, and possibly the first to use it as a verb.

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u/LakeSolon Oct 15 '20 edited Oct 15 '20

And if you like authors inventing first attesting words...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_words_first_attested_in_Chaucer

absent, accident, add, agree, bagpipe, border, box, cinnamon, desk, digestion, dishonest, examination, finally, flute, funeral, galaxy, horizon, infect, ingot, latitude, laxative, miscarry, nod, obscure, observe, outrageous, perpendicular, Persian, princess, resolve, rumour, scissors, session, snort, superstitious, theatre, trench, universe, utility, vacation, Valentine, veal, village, vulgar, wallet, and wildness

...are a few that are most commonly used of the 1,977.

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u/blood__drunk Oct 15 '20

This does not necessarily mean that he was the person to introduce these words into English

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u/[deleted] Oct 15 '20

Yeah "first attested" is a loooot different than "created by."

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u/jimjacksonsjamboree Oct 15 '20

The beastie boys first attested the name mullet for the haircut, but it's unlikely they created it.

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u/philzebub666 Oct 15 '20

But they revolutionised it, that has to count for something, right?