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Word and name origins Trivia Quiz

Many words and names have pretty banal origins, hopefully here are some that will make you say 'Oh really?'. There is a slightly anatomical bias to many of the questions. British based.

A multiple-choice quiz by satguru. Estimated time: 6 mins.

Author
satguru

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
266,847

Updated
Oct 14 22

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Very Difficult

Avg Score
4 / 10

Plays
1143

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. What is the meaning of the British place name 'Nottingham'? Hint

Estate of Snot's people

Knotting estate

Estate of Nott's people

Gnarled wood estate

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Question 2 of 10

2. What is the original name of Bristol? Hint

Bristol

South Gloucester

West Bath

Bristow

NEXT>

Question 3 of 10

3. The slang word 'carsey' for toilet originated in the army and is common in Britain and Australia. But which language did it come from originally?

Hint

Italian

Arabic

Spanish

Farsi

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Question 4 of 10

4. Where in Britain would you find the town meaning 'Camp on breast-shaped hill'? Hint

Winchester

Chesterfield

Manchester

Bristol

NEXT>

Question 5 of 10

5. What is the meaning of the London suburb name 'Neasden'? Hint

Cow enclosure

Nellie's den

Nose-shaped hill

Neil's hill

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Question 6 of 10

6. The obsolete airline 'Dan-Air' was short for what? Hint

Danish Airlines

Davis and Newman Airlines

Daniel Airlines

Danmark Aero

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Question 7 of 10

7. What is the literal meaning of the bread 'Pumpernickel' when translated from German? Hint

Pumping metal

Farting Nicholas

Dark loaf

Bouncing bread

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Question 8 of 10

8. We've all heard people talking poppycock, but do you know what it means literally? Hint

Soft faeces

Named after a bird

Nothing, just onomatopaeic

Named after a bouquet of flowers

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Question 9 of 10

9. What is the meaning of the Lancashire town Ramsbottom? Hint

Just as it says, ram's bottom

Ram shaped valley

Valley of the sheep

Wild garlic valley

NEXT>

Question 10 of 10

10. Finally one for Americans. The top seats (as in height) in a stadium are called 'The bleachers', but why? Hint

It's the first place the cleaners start working

The sun bleaches the seats

Named after Horace Bleacher who built an early stadium

The first stadium that high was in Bleacher, Tennessee

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. What is the meaning of the British place name 'Nottingham'?

Answer: Estate of Snot's people

Despite beginning with an 'S', more by convenience than politeness the name at some time became abbreviated to Nottingham without the initial 'S'. 'Ingham' is a common Old English suffix for 'estate', and the prefix is whose estate it is. How the poor guy ended up with a name like 'Snot' is anyone's guess but I'm sure you can imagine.

2. What is the original name of Bristol?

Answer: Bristow

There is a very unusual reason for the 'L' at the end of Bristol. Bristolians add an 'L' to the end of words ending in open vowels sounds, so even though the town was called Bristow, most locals added the 'L' as they did to all similar words. In the end the official name reflected the way it was actually said.

It means the site of the bridge in Anglo-Saxon. It is west of Bath and south of Gloucester, and has spent time both in and out of the counties of Gloucestershire, the doomed Avon created in the 1970s reshuffle and a county in itself as it is again in 2007.

3. The slang word 'carsey' for toilet originated in the army and is common in Britain and Australia. But which language did it come from originally?

Answer: Italian

During World War Two many Italian troops used the word 'casa' to refer to the toilet, simply translating to 'house'. Once they fought with the allies the name caught on and became the English version, also spelt 'khazi'.

4. Where in Britain would you find the town meaning 'Camp on breast-shaped hill'?

Answer: Manchester

Manchester is derived from the Brittonic for breast-shaped hill, and when the Romans briefly named it they translated it to Mammucium, and the 'chester' part indicates a Roman camp on said hill. Bristols is rhyming slang also meaning breasts (don't ask).

5. What is the meaning of the London suburb name 'Neasden'?

Answer: Nose-shaped hill

The Anglo-Saxons often used very simple descriptive names for their settlements, and the shape of the local hill was quite a common reason. Den of course being Anglo-Saxon for hill. A cow being technically part of the neat family could theoretically be in a 'neat's den'.

6. The obsolete airline 'Dan-Air' was short for what?

Answer: Davis and Newman Airlines

Even now, many people assume Dan Air was from Denmark. In fact SAS, which translates tidily to 'Scandinavian air services' covers Norway, Sweden and Denmark altogether. The nearest Denmark has to a national airline is the private company Maersk Air.

7. What is the literal meaning of the bread 'Pumpernickel' when translated from German?

Answer: Farting Nicholas

One example of the German sense of humour, due to its alleged effects, the dark bread made with molasses is called 'Farting Nicholas', after the shared name 'Old Nick' for the devil.

8. We've all heard people talking poppycock, but do you know what it means literally?

Answer: Soft faeces

Sorry everyone, it was the poo answer. If you switch the 'o's for 'a's you get the true meaning, borrowed from the original Dutch phrase of the two words.

9. What is the meaning of the Lancashire town Ramsbottom?

Answer: Wild garlic valley

Unusually for me, the clean answer is the correct one. Bottom is understandable as a valley, and 'Ram' in this context is Anglo-Saxon for wild garlic. It never stops people making jokes about it though.

10. Finally one for Americans. The top seats (as in height) in a stadium are called 'The bleachers', but why?

Answer: The sun bleaches the seats

I always wondered what these mysterious places were about, now I know. In Britain the indoor version is referred to as 'The Gods'. These are because they are the highest.

All references are from the Reader's Digest Atlas of Britain and the numerous word books by Adrian Room.

Source: Author satguru

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor stuthehistoryguy before going online.
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