The Allusionist 10. Election Lexicon
May 5, 2015
A lively etymology tour of election vocabulary. Words like ballot and poll get traced to balls and hair. Party and campaign reveal unexpected social and military roots. Debate and argue are shown to come from words for fighting and brightness. Even Tories and lobbying have surprising origins.
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Democracy Means Rule Of The People
- 'Democracy' literally means 'rule of the people', from Greek demos (people) and kratos (rule).
- Helen Zaltzman highlights how etymology reveals plain meanings behind political language.
Ballots Began As Little Voting Balls
- Ballots originally used physical balls (ballotta) where white meant yes and black meant no.
- Helen recounts ancient voting using balls, shells, beads and pottery fragments for anonymity.
Party: From Division To Gathering
- 'Party' comes from Old French party meaning a part or division and later shifted to mean social gathering.
- Helen notes the word evolved from dividing people politically to also meaning people brought together socially.