You've Got Ketchup on Your Muumuu: An A--to--Z Guide to English Words from Around the World [Paperback]

Eugene Ehrlich (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2001 | ISBN-10: 0805066365 | ISBN-13: 978-0805066364 | Edition: 1st

From one of America's top wordsmiths, a lively survey of words from abroad that make English a truly international language.

With dry wit and remarkable erudition, Eugene Ehrlich takes us on an eye-opening tour of our ever-changing language, showing us how English has, throughout its history, seamlessly sewn words from other languages into its original fabric. The language we call our own has in fact been culled from the languages of ancient invaders, such as the Romans, the Angles, the Saxons, the Jutes, and the French.

Ehrlich's comprehensive research and vast lingual experience bring to light the origins of some of our most popular and well-used words. For example, graffiti is shown to come from the Italian word meaning "scratches." The word for one of our favorite French pastries, éclair, means "lightning flash." And ketchup comes from the Chinese Ke-Jap, which means "fish sauce."

Ehrlich illuminates the origins, purposes, and meanings of once-foreign words that have become part of the rich texture of our language.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Don't be a troglodyte. The zeitgeist these days is decidedly international, nicht wahr? If the thought of a polyglot salmagundi fills you with angst, well, no cojones, no glory. For Ketchup on Your Muumuu, Eugene Ehrlich, the high-muck-a-muck (from the Chinook) of mots justes, schleps a smorgasbord of borrowed bon mots out for a viewing. Each of the originally foreign words included here has crept its way into use by speakers of English--a language, says Ehrlich in his introduction, that "has long been an active borrower and lender." Some of the words included--hashish (Arabic), shampoo (Hindi), tutu (French)--are more common than others: favela (Brazilian Portuguese), izzat (Urdu), nautch (Hindi). Many debuted on the menus of ethnic restaurants. All receive star treatment from Ehrlich, who for each entry offers pronunciation, derivation, meaning(s), history and examples of use in English, and a heavy dose of humor. Call Ehrlich what you may--pundit, swami, maestro, savant. If you learn to gabble like the literati, no one will look askance the next time you spill ketchup on your muumuu at your local coffee klatsch. --Jane Steinberg --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Ehrlich, the well-known wordsmith, author, and coeditor of The Oxford American Dictionary, has penned another of his popular word dictionaries. This time it is of English words borrowed from around the globe. The dictionary follows the standard format but also supplies pronunciation, origin, original meaning, the time period in which a word was adopted into English, and the current English meaning. Throughout, Ehrlich inserts his own commentary to add a light touch to the entries. The hundreds of definitions range from words that changed from their original meaning along their journey into the English language (such as the Spanish "aficionado"), to words that changed only a little (including the Italian "graffiti"), all the way to words that were adopted intact (such as the Turkish word "yogurt"). Fun and fanciful, this dictionary would make a fine addition to public and school libraries that collect widely in the area, but it is an optional purchase nonetheless.
-Neal Wyatt, Chesterfield Cty. P.L., VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Holt Paperbacks; 1st edition (March 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805066365
• ISBN-13: 978-0805066364
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,142,876 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent resource, and great for a laugh, April 14, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: You've Got Ketchup on Your Muumuu: An A--to--Z Guide to English Words from Around the World (Hardcover)

I enjoyed this book for many reasons. Number one, the title alone is enough to make you want to buy it. How can you resist? I write every day (newspaper) and it helps to have a book like this. I am always looking for creative ways to express myself and this is what this does for you. I find it even more helpful that he supplies a guide for pronunciation so I don't have to sound like an idiot if I want to use one of these words in a conversation.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars English, a truly international language., June 17, 2004

By 

M. E. Volmar - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: You've Got Ketchup on Your Muumuu: An A--to--Z Guide to English Words from Around the World (Hardcover)

This illuminating, well-researched and entertaining reference, introduces us to a comprehensive collection of foreign words and phrases that have, over many decades, been adopted, assimilated, and absorbed into our English lexicon.
This book is written in a very clear, informative style, with the author's whimsical, humorous commentaries often adding a pleasurable and often witty touch to his discussion.
The words are arranged alphabetically in a dictionary format, which facilitates browsing or consulting. Each entry includes the word's pronunciation, origin, original meaning, approximate date of introduction into English, and the meaning of its current usage.
If you want to know how, when and where words like smorgasbord, chutzpah and paparazzi, and expressions like femme fatale and persona non grata made it into English, then, this is the book you need. It's a fun historical record of our vocabulary's most celebrated international contributors.
--Reviewed by M. E. Volmar

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars HIGH MUCK-A-MUCK AT ITS BEST! (LOOK IT UP!), January 6, 2003

By 

Alan W. Petrucelli (THE ENTERTAINMENT REPORT (ALAN W. PETRUCELLI)) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: You've Got Ketchup on Your Muumuu: An A--to--Z Guide to English Words from Around the World (Paperback)

Let's play vocabulary catch-up: The word "ketchup" is as American as burgers and fries, right? Wrong! The word is actually derived from the Chinese word "ke-jap," which means "fish sauce." In this fascinating volume, renowned linguist Eugene Ehrlich takes us on an eye-opening (and sometimes jaw-dropping) tour of how Americans have taken words from other languages and used them as our own. Kitsch? It's German, and means "trash." Ukulele? It's Hawaiian, and means (literally) "leaping flea." High muck-a-muck? It's Chinook and means "plenty to eat." The book is plenty of fun.