{"id":4048,"date":"2025-08-09T14:50:35","date_gmt":"2025-08-09T14:50:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?p=4048"},"modified":"2025-08-09T14:50:35","modified_gmt":"2025-08-09T14:50:35","slug":"adventures-in-etymology-feathers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?p=4048","title":{"rendered":"Adventures in Etymology &#8211; Feathers"},"content":{"rendered":"<div itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/AudioObject\"><meta itemprop=\"name\" content=\"Adventures in Etymology &amp;#8211; Feathers\" \/><meta itemprop=\"uploadDate\" content=\"2025-08-09T14:50:35+00:00\" \/><meta itemprop=\"encodingFormat\" content=\"audio\/mpeg\" \/><meta itemprop=\"duration\" content=\"PT2M11S\" \/><meta itemprop=\"description\" content=\"In this Adventure in Etymology we investigate the word feather.\n\n\n\nA feather [\u02c8f\u025b\u00f0.\u0259(\u0279) \/ \u02c8f\u025b\u00f0.\u025a] is:\n\n\n  A branching, hair-like structure that grows on the bodies of birds, used for flight, swimming, protection and display.\n  Long hair on the lower ...\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"2.3\" \/><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_5000\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-4048-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3\">https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\" style=\"margin-bottom: 1px !important;\">Podcast: <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_pinw\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Play in new window\" onclick=\"return powerpress_pinw('https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?powerpress_pinw=4048-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Play in new window<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"feathers.mp3\">Download<\/a><\/p><p>In this Adventure in Etymology we investigate the word <strong>feather<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/images\/various\/feathers.jpg\" width=\"630\" height=\"354\" alt=\"Feathers\" \/><\/p>\n<p>A <strong>feather<\/strong> [\u02c8f\u025b\u00f0.\u0259(\u0279) \/ \u02c8f\u025b\u00f0.\u025a] is:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A branching, hair-like structure that grows on the bodies of birds, used for flight, swimming, protection and display.<\/li>\n<li>Long hair on the lower legs of a dog or horse, especially a draft horse.<br \/>\n[<em>other meanings are available]<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>It comes from Middle English <em>fe\u00feer<\/em> (feather), from Old English <em>fe\u00feer<\/em> (feather, pen), from Proto-West Germanic <em>*fe\u00feru<\/em> (feather, wing), from Proto-Germanic <em>*fe\u00fer\u014d<\/em> (feather), from Proto-Indo-European <em>*p\u00e9th\u2082r\u0325<\/em> (feather, wing), from <em>*peth\u2082-<\/em> (to fly, to spread out) [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/feather#English\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Words from the same Proto-Germanic roots include <strong>veer<\/strong> (feather, plume) and <strong>vlerk<\/strong> (wing, scoundrel) in Dutch, <strong>Feder<\/strong> (feather, spring, nib, penholder, fountain pen) and <strong>Gefieder<\/strong> (plumage) in German, and <strong>federa<\/strong> (pillowcase) in Italian (via Lombardic <em>fedeara<\/em> (feather)) [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic\/fe%C3%BEr%C5%8D\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p><a data-flickr-embed=\"true\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/sumofmarc\/7680472652\/in\/photolist-cGGqWh-24oyiVh-21LUM3o-QZsKYJ-24pgCnW-6CNn6Q-6YEXRG-6YEX2f-4Siy5Z-f434T-pH5Xb8-6YEXsY-Pqs39A-cHkUuj-mqJNih-GkufYf-4mWJyj-cHkTYJ-24b5rRC-6HfU7-pH5YB4-x243MC-6zo8Pc-BJmGWJ-BDnJC2-weZtjW-mqGX12-Bd9FC8-fzqMbn-BJmK4u-6zseN5-pH6jSK-T3GHos-pEZxWf-6zo6pM-pqFPUS-99L5po-oLeHcs-mnHq5R-RPLGtB-Rfo8Sq-vaja1i-Xv6Au7-pqDTbT-u3qy4W-BL88vE-fC8jAu-6zo428-T6J4Cp-v9NM59\" title=\"Roger Federer (Switzerland)\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/7256\/7680472652_2d9c3a155b_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"498\" alt=\"Roger Federer (Switzerland)\"\/><\/a><script async src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>By the way, the Swiss tennis player <strong>Roger Federer<\/strong> gets his surname from the Swiss German word <strong>Federer<\/strong>, which means &#8216;one who works with or trades in quills&#8217;, which are traditionally made from feathers [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Federer_(surname)\">source<\/a>]<\/p>\n<p>Other words from the same Proto-Indo-European roots include <strong>\u03c0\u03c4\u03b7\u03bd\u03cc<\/strong> (ptin\u00f3 &#8211; bird) in Greek, <strong>\u092a\u0924\u094d\u0930<\/strong> (patra &#8211; letter, paper, document, leaf) in Hindi,  <strong>adar<\/strong> (birds) and <strong>adain<\/strong> (wing, fin) in Welsh, and <strong>appetite<\/strong>, <strong>petal<\/strong>, <strong>petition<\/strong> and <strong>fathom<\/strong> in English [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European\/peth%E2%82%82-\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p><a data-flickr-embed=\"true\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/54392239@N00\/69422445\/in\/photolist-78NSH-NqDv1-6BZZTR-6P5h2D-4J1Gkz-C9G4m-49Pr1p-o9Ycu-8jmERz-Luau6-2pmtBR-CGBCp-77ZX2o-6MnREG-252mymT-2Hndw-dUTc1-ceThH9-H2cFM1-6ChPQH-oL8qAG-5BxbFg-7Bc2X6-oFqpp9-oFbtUi-697xcu-nNpqkP-6EqSAJ-oFew5N-6vEVBR-3xmFc-jUaVvr-eU7pjC-6EmGC2-8Xm9ED-rhk4v-6BZZQ6-h4S8Xa-nJHm2-nbJKJ6-dcZgus-9RdqqG-6tGWrj-facMW-56nMYm-8PSqvo-5L1toi-QUgRBW-A2JwtX-6APXzH\" title=\"Helicopter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/20\/69422445_9cff725421_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" alt=\"Helicopter\"\/><\/a><script async src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Incidentally, the word <strong>heliocopter<\/strong> also comes from the same roots, via French <strong>h\u00e9licopt\u00e8re<\/strong> (helicopter), which comes from Ancient Greek <em>\u1f15\u03bb\u03b9\u03be<\/em> (h\u00e9lix &#8211; spiral) &#038;\u200e <em>\u03c0\u03c4\u03b5\u03c1\u03cc\u03bd<\/em> (pter\u00f3n &#8211; feather, wing) &#8211; at least the <strong>-pter<\/strong> part does &#8211; see also <strong>pterodactyl<\/strong> (&#8220;winged finger&#8221;) [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/helicopter#English\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Can anybody identify which birds the feathers in the photo at the top of this post come from? I found them in my garden.<\/p>\n<p>If you would like to support this podcast, you can make a donation via <a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/uk\/cgi-bin\/webscr?cmd=_flow&amp;SESSION=aLjPfXL-vP_1gQ_U23Iz8_hSWLlhzLHPMFZrt32dIEfG8htoNFLYaPoWkv8&amp;dispatch=5885d80a13c0db1f8e263663d3faee8def8934b92a630e40b7fef61ab7e9fe63\">PayPal<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/omniglot\">Patreon<\/a>, or <a href=\"http:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/donations.htm\">contribute to Omniglot in other ways<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Radio Omniglot podcasts are brought to you in association with <a href=\"https:\/\/blubrry.com\/services\/podcast-hosting\/?code=omniglot\">Blubrry Podcast Hosting<\/a>, a great place to host your podcasts. Get your first month free with the promo code <strong>omniglot<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.japanesepod101.com\/member\/go.php?r=759259&amp;i=b0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/images\/banners\/banner_japanesepod.jpg\" alt=\"The Fastest Way to Learn Japanese Guaranteed with JapanesePod101.com\" width=\"630\" height=\"83\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>I also write about words, etymology and other language-related topics on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/bloggle\/\">Omniglot Blog<\/a>, and I explore etymological connections between Celtic languages on the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/\">Celtiadur<\/a> blog.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-5001128073855040\"\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<!-- Blog horizontal --><br \/>\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\n     style=\"display:block\"\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-5001128073855040\"\n     data-ad-slot=\"1685480124\"\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins><br \/>\n<script>\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\n<\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div itemscope itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/AudioObject\"><meta itemprop=\"name\" content=\"Adventures in Etymology &amp;#8211; Feathers\" \/><meta itemprop=\"uploadDate\" content=\"2025-08-09T14:50:35+00:00\" \/><meta itemprop=\"encodingFormat\" content=\"audio\/mpeg\" \/><meta itemprop=\"duration\" content=\"PT2M11S\" \/><meta itemprop=\"description\" content=\"In this Adventure in Etymology we investigate the word feather.\n\n\n\nA feather [\u02c8f\u025b\u00f0.\u0259(\u0279) \/ \u02c8f\u025b\u00f0.\u025a] is:\n\n\n  A branching, hair-like structure that grows on the bodies of birds, used for flight, swimming, protection and display.\n  Long hair on the lower ...\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentUrl\" content=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3\" \/><meta itemprop=\"contentSize\" content=\"2.3\" \/><div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_5001\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-4048-2\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3?_=2\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3\">https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\" style=\"margin-bottom: 1px !important;\">Podcast: <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_pinw\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Play in new window\" onclick=\"return powerpress_pinw('https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/?powerpress_pinw=4048-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Play in new window<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/radio_omniglot\/www.omniglot.com\/soundfiles\/etymology\/feathers.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"feathers.mp3\">Download<\/a><\/p><p>In this Adventure in Etymology we investigate the word feather. A feather [\u02c8f\u025b\u00f0.\u0259(\u0279) \/ \u02c8f\u025b\u00f0.\u025a] is: A branching, hair-like structure that grows on the bodies of birds, used for flight, swimming, protection and display. Long hair on the lower legs of a dog or horse, especially a draft horse. [other meanings are available] It comes [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[98,97,47,20,56,23,24,61,113,12,4,58,11,55,1,57,59,119,7],"tags":[90,191,297,299,298,9,15,8,103],"class_list":["post-4048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adventures-in-etymology","category-ancient-greek-","category-dutch","category-english","category-etymology","category-french","category-german","category-greek-","category-hindi-","category-italian","category-language","category-middle-english","category-music","category-old-english-aenglisc","category-podcast","category-proto-germanic","category-proto-indo-european","category-proto-west-germanic","category-welsh","tag-etymology","tag-feather","tag-feathers","tag-federer","tag-helicopter","tag-language","tag-music","tag-podcast","tag-words"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4048","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4048"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4048\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4057,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4048\/revisions\/4057"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4048"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4048"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/radio\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4048"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}