ETYMOLOGY REVISITED: HEALING MEMORY FOR MEDICAL EXPRESSIONS

ETYMOLOGY REVISITED: HEALING MEMORY FOR MEDICAL EXPRESSIONS Zhenya Marinova Gundasheva, MA, English and French Instructor Department of Social Sciences and Business Language Training, Faculty of Economics Trakia University, Student Campus, Stara Zagora 6000, Bulgaria Email: jenia.gundasheva@gmail.com, tel.: ++359/878104450 Word count: 3995, character count (with spaces): 24895 Bionote: I received my first BA is in Korean Studies from Sofia University in 2003. Five years later I completed a second BA in Applied Linguistics and an MA in Translation Studies. I have been teaching languages and translating ever since. I am interested in lexicology, methodology of English for Specific and Academic Purposes, Medical and Veterinary Medical English, course design and creative ideas. I also translate and interpret and enjoy learning foreign languages. Abstract: The aim of the proposed poster is to report the results from a linguistic challenge which took place in a course in English for Veterinary Medicine. We introduced the notion of “etymology networks” which included inquiries about medical terms. As an independent project students had to create a map of related terms and expressions. Learners not only included terms with identical morphemes, but also tried to “translate” creatively common expressions into medical jargon as an amusing way to incorporate their knowledge of Greek/Latin roots into Bulgarian. They were also given information on the mythological and historical origins of the medical expressions, and thus were immersed in the culture of healers and scientists since the ancient times. Learning about etymology gave them a sense of identity and belonging to a special community and contributed to their professional and personal growth. Key words: etymology, learning terminology, veterinary medicine Introduction This article aims to describe medical terminology from the point of view of teaching through etymological connections. It also describes the role of culture and healthcare as an environment where understanding about healing and healers has emerged and to touch on the origins of science and how it has influenced the origins of the vocabulary associated with it. The results of a project work on etymology of body terms with students in veterinary medicine at Trakia University are included as an illustration of a learning experiment related to the traditions and common heritage of veterinary medical practitioners in Europe. The cultural and linguistic aspect of the origins of terms Medical English constitutes an area of linguistic study which is closely related to the semantics of lexemes, their terminological and idiomatic use and application. Words as semantic units are part of the network of medical parlance and its variations and constitute a comprehensive network of connections drawn between the terms and their origins. For this study we have selected zoonyms and combining forms which offer specific examples of etymological relations and explain their use in teaching Medical English. Meaning at the basic levels of morphemes is revealed through the etymology of terms and their combinations. Prefixes and affixes from both Latin and Greek dominate the terminological database, whereas combining forms from Slavic languages are frequently given as translations or local equivalents to the Latinized form of the word. Similar to the common use of lay terms for animal diseases such as ‘scabies’ or ‘mange’ instead of ‘atopic dermatitis’ is the use of traditional Bulgarian words such as ‘chervenka’ for ‘erysipelas’, ‘shap’ for ‘epidemic stomatitis’, or a hypernym for the various poxes – ‘sharka’. The preference for either term depends on the purpose and the speakers involved in the communicative situation. Normally Latinized versions of the terms are preferred by veterinarians or other physicians, while the lay terminology is used by farmers and non-professional folk. Commonly, the body parts and internal organs all have alternative names in medical and general language use and that holds true for any medical situation that involves a local language, apart from the Western medical terminology. In this experiment, students were asked to select a specific body system and to discover as many word origins as possible related to the English vocabulary, associated with it. Interestingly enough, not only anatomical parts that are common for animals and humans have originated from Greek and Latin. The names of animals from these two languages have survived in the names of conditions, shapes, colours and other functions of organisms and are still in active use. Table 1. Selected zoonyms in Greek, English and Bulgarian Greek English Bulgarian Examples το ζωον Animal животно zoonosis η ορνιϛ Bird птица ornithosis ο κοραξ Raven гарван coracoids η κορωνη Crow врана coronoid ο κοκκυξ Cuckoo кукувица coccyx ο ψιττακοϛ Parrot папагал psittacosis η γλαυξ Owl сова glaucoma η πτερυξ Wing крило pterygoid η αλωπηξ Fox лисица alopecia η αραχνη Spider паяк arachnoid ο βουϛ ox, bull бик, вол bulimia το λιποϛ, το στεαρ fat мас liposarcoma, steatorrhea το κρεαϛ Flesh плът pancreas An interesting case of an animal, which has an apparently symbolic meaning for the medical art is the snake. The word for serpent originates from ‘serpere’ – ‘to creep, crawl, spread slowly’ and has given rise to an unusual word for a tumour which spreads slowly: ‘serpeginious’, and another word ‘serpens’ – resembling a snake as in Ulcus serpens, or Erysipelas serpens. The snake is a mythological symbol related to the caduceus – the winged rod embellished by two serpents in a double helix as the symbol of Hermes. In fact, the caduceus was mistakenly adopted as an insignia of the American Medical Corps and afterwards introduced as a sign of medicine. The ancient symbol, however, is the staff of Aesculapius - a coarse rod entwined by a single serpent. Aesculapius observed how a snake brought a certain herb which resuscitated a dead snake and this image became his symbol (which also reminds of the rejuvenation brought about by the shedding of the skin). Wisdom, healing and art have also been associated with the image of the snake in the medical art. Also, ‘amnios’ was the Greek word for ‘lamb’ and also the bowl in which the sacrificial blood was collected in ancient rituals. Perhaps the current use of ‘amnion’ roots back to these meanings. It now signifies the thin, tough membrane surrounding the fetus during gestation. It is supposed that ancient shepherds knew (and called) the amniotic sac after the frequent births of lambs under their care. There is also a connection with a current experiment of placing a fetus (a lamb) in a bag that imitates the amnion outside of the mother’s body for extra-uterine development. Lambs were also symbolic of innocence and kindness, and were considered in monotheistic religions as a sacrificial animal. The wolf, or lupus, is found in several dermatoses, such as Lupus vulgaris (tuberculosis of the skin, where infection gnaws at the skin), and Lupus erythematosus (inflamed and pigmented malar prominences resembling a lupine appearance). The legend of the she-wolf which nurtured Romulus and Remus has no doubt influenced the arts and the connections drawn between the wilderness and the human society have exemplified predecessors of the totemic origins of European societies. A mythical creature such as the Sphinx with the body of a lion, the head and breast of a woman, and the wings of an eagle has been related to ‘sphincter’ and ‘sphingo-‘ through the verb ‘sphingein’ – ‘to bind tightly’. Another mythical persona – the Medusa Gorgon – has provided us with an image of her tresses turned into serpents only to serve as the name Caput Medusae – a collection of dilated veins around the umbilicus, consequent to portal venous hypertension. Even a god, such as Pan, has donated his name to phrases such as ‘panic attack’, which interestingly, relates to Pan’s habit of scaring villagers who ventured to trespass his woods at night. Another myth associated with Arachne, explains why mere mortals should never challenge the skills and power of the gods. The young Lydian maiden entered a contest with Athene to prove her weaving skills were better than the goddess’s. Naturally, the maiden suffered from remorse from this impossible bid and hang herself. Athene turned her into a spider to serve as a reminder to mere humans who have lost their humility. Not only mythologically inclined minds have been credited with coining medical terms. The eponyms of diseases, organisms or the role of physicians in scientific history has been marked by chance discoveries and dedicated work. The case of several British soldiers who died after drinking contaminated goat’s milk on the island of Malta was investigated by Sir David Bruce (1855-1931) who discovered the infecting bacteria, Bacillus melitensis in their spleens, and gave his name to the disease - brucellosis. A Danish veterinarian, Dr. Bernard L.F. Bang later received credit for studying the counterpart of Brucellosis in domestic animals, which is still commonly called Bang’s disease. A specific genus of anaerobic bacteria, which includes many pathogenic species to both animals and humans, Salmonella, was called after the first recipient of a doctoral degree in Veterinary Medicine in the USA (1876), Daniel Elmer Salmon (1850-1914). In 1886 he identified the bacterial cause of swine cholera, the prototype of the genus that came to bear his name. Perhaps the most famous use of the name of the domestic bovine is the origin of the first “vaccination”. In 1796 Edward Jenner proved that persons inoculated with cowpox showed no reaction when later deliberately inoculated with smallpox. Later, the term vaccination was extended to the injection of any microbial antigen for the purposes of inducing immunity to a corresponding disease. Not only the Latin word for ‘cow’ – vacca is interesting to the modern vet student. The two omophones for ‘calf’ in English exemplify the role other languages play in the current use of the younger of the cow and the muscular back of the leg. The word for lower leg comes from Old Norse ‘kalfi’ meant the same and possibly originated from the Indo-European ‘gelbh’ - ‘to bunch up’ (perhaps due to the similar action that muscles exert when they contract). Incidentally, another root ‘guelbh’, meaning ‘womb’, later ‘cub’ led to the Old English ‘cealf’, meaning the young offspring of an animal especially a cow. An interesting parallel can be drawn between the names of colours in Greek, Latin, English and Bulgarian for comparative terminology learning. Table 2. Names of colours in English, Greek, Latin and Bulgarian English Greek Latin Bulgarian Colour το χρομα color цвят grey Πολιοϛ ravus сив White Λευκοϛ albus, candidus бял Black Μελαϛ ater, niger черен Red Ερυθροϛ ruber червен Yellow Ξανθοϛ flavus жълт Blue Κυανοϛ caeruleus син Green Χλωροϛ viridis, prasinus зелен Silver Αργυροϛ argentes сребрист Brown Φαιοϛ brunneus кафяв Gold Χρυσοϛ aureus златен The terms derived from colour names in Greek or Latin indicate a feature or a discoloration of a surface, organ or a substance and carry either a diagnostic meaning, or a pathological condition. For such, the Bulgarian words are used to explain and translate the strictly medical meaning of the scientific term. Examples such as ‘zhaltenitsa’ (‘yellow disease’) – ‘hepatitis’ explain the yellow coloration around the eyes of those afflicted with jaundice; ‘posinyal ot stud’ (blue skin) which can be used for people exposed to a freezingly cold weather, ‘byal kato platno’ (as white as a sheet) for someone who is in shock. Interestingly, jaundice and ‘yellow bird’ are the two meanings of the word ‘icterus’ in Greek. The yellow bird is supposedly the oriole, which owes its name to the Latin word for ‘gold’ – ‘aureus’. Pliny explained the connection between the oriole and the disease by claiming that the sick with hepatitis could be cured just by watching the bird, which would carry away the disease. Phrases in medical terminology are related mostly to diseases or anatomical parts. They usually refer to a feature or are an eponym of the condition. There are instances when the creativity of different cultures has accounted for a variety of names for the same affliction. Traveller’s diarrhea is also known as Aztec two-step, Delhi belly, Montezuma’s revenge, Teheran trots, or in Bulgarian ‘ryadko stastie’ (diluted/rare luck). Also, syphilis in the 15th century was known in France as the ‘Neapolitan disease’, or the ‘Spanish pox’, in England and Saxony ‘the French disease’, in Russia – ‘the Polish disease’, in Persia – ‘the Turkish disease’, etc. The term ‘syphilis’ is said to be coined by Girolamo Fracastoro (1478-1553), a Veronese physician and poet who published a poem called Syphilis sive morbus gallicus. There he came up with a myth of a swineherd who was punished by the sun-god with a disfiguring disease. His name may have been taken from the Greek word ‘sypheos’ – ‘a pigsty’. Another use of phraseology is idioms with animals and the following table illustrates some of them (from an unpublished short study on zoonymic idioms): Table 3. Zoonymic idioms in French, English, and Bulgarian Francais English bulgarian concept avoir du chien to have style избаран, изтупан (stylish) stylishness avoir le bourdon to have the blues; to feel gloomy потънали са ми гемиите (my boats have drowned) depression bête comme une oie to be as thick as two planks; to be as thick as a brick глупава като гъска (as stupid as a goose) stupidity, derision crinière de lion lion’s mane лъвска грива (lion’s mane) impressive vanity, superiority devenir chèvre to go crazy/ to drive sb up the wall побърква ме/ прави ме на луд (drives me crazy) folly être chaud lapin to be a bit of a lad разгонен като пес (a dog in heat) virility être copain comme cochon to be as thick as thieves; to be hand in glove дупе и гащи (like buttocks and pants) close partnership/ friendship être doux comme un agneau to be as gentle as a lamb кротък като агне (meek like a lamb) meekness être fier comme un coq/ paon to be as proud/ vain as a peacock; to be a cock-a-hoop надут като пуяк (bloated [with pride] as a peacock) pride, vanity être fort comme un boeuf to be as strong as an ox здрав/ як като бик (as sturdy/ healthy as a bull) sturdiness, strength être malin comme un singe to be as clever as a barrel of monkeys хитър като маймуна/ лисица (as sly as a monkey/ a fox) astuteness, cunningness, resourcefulness être muet comme une carpe to be as tight as a clam ням като риба (as mute as a fish) shock, inability to respond être myope comme une taupe to be as blind as a bat сляп като къртица (as blind as a mole) blindness, lack of vision être prêt à gueuler comme un putois to squeal like a stuck pig квичи като прасе под ножа (squeals like a pig under a dagger) humiliation être rusé comme un renard to be as sly as a fox хитър като лисица (as sly as a fox) cunningness être têtu comme une mule to be as stubborn as a mule инатлив като магаре (as stubborn as a donkey) stubbornness faire la fine mouche to be a sharp customer набито око (a sharp eye) discernment faire le pied de grue to hang around мотая се (walk aimlessly) wait foolishly fièvre de cheval raging fever; sudden fit, obsession горя целия (i’m burning [with fever]) a good pretext to flee from a tight encounter filer comme un lièvre be off like a shot дим да ме няма (i’ve vanished like smoke) run-away frais comme un gardon as fresh as a daisy свеж като репичка/ краставичка (as fresh as a raddish/ cornichon, gherkin) freshness, healthy state regardless of circumstances larmes de crocodile crocodile tears рони крокодилски сълзи (oozes crocodile tears) despair noyer le poisson duck/ avoid the issue избягвам въпроса (avoid the question) evasion plate comme une limande flat-chested плоска като дъска (as flat as a plank) image of unattractive female figure poser un lapin to stand sb up връзвам тенекия на някого (tie a tin can to somebody) make sb wait in vain prendre qqn pour un pigeon think sb can be fooled взема ме за канарче/ за мезе (be taken for a canary/ for entry meal) being taken for a fool rire comme une baleine to laugh one’s head off смея се като гевендия (laughs like a prostitute) arrogance sauter du coq à l’âne to jump from one subject to another скачам от тема на тема (jump from one topic to another) confusion souffler comme un phoque to wheeze like a pair of old bagpipes пуфти като парен локомотив (puffs like a locomotive) tiredness, panting tirer les vers du nez à qqn to warm secrets out of sb вадя думи с ченгел от устата (draw words out with an iron stick) eliciting a response Idiomatic expressions, though interesting, are not strictly related to etymological comparisons, but they present a naturally rich illustration of the symbolic representation of animals in different cultures. The animals are usually related to traits, characters, emotions, looks, and sounds, which reveal the cultural biases, stereotypes, and perceptions. With representations of bulls as strong and rabbits or dogs as fecund, the European cultures have provided plenty of cases for overlapping associations for the domestic and wildlife across the continent. The experiment The experiment took place last semester (February-June 2017) with second year students of Veterinary Medicine at Trakia University, Stara Zagora, Bulgaria. It aimed to engage students in independent work on medical language and etymology of terms, and serve as a bridge across the medical language they acquire in their core disciplines, and their foreign language studies. The experiment consisted of the following stages: Etymological notes on selected words (body parts exclusively and diseases where appropriate) were given at the beginning of each lesson. Students could indulge in the stories behind the words and make connections with the current usage of the terms. Each lesson ended with an interesting etymological note extracted from printed and online dictionaries that relate to the thematic content of the lesson Students were asked to prepare final projects on a specific body system and do a search on the etymology of the main terms, the English phraseology and their translation into Bulgarian Students were distributed two tests on terms from Greek and Latin origin and asked to complete them for extra credit. The tests comprised of 100 MCQ each and included general and specific vocabulary used in medical studies. Students who had done the test were much keener to devote more time and creativity to their final project. This proved that their initial interest was inspired by the test and the etymological notes. There were several practical aspects of this experiment: To establish and ‘see’ the connections between the medicine, culture, and languages through terms for diseases, organisms, structures (organs or systems), and morphemes To learn how to link stories, legends, myths to the current use of the terms, that is to understand the mythical origins of terminology. To learn more about the figure of the healer or how the medical professional is perceived in language and culture To create associative maps called ‘etymology networks’ (maps and tables) that reflect the thinking process of the learner and the nature of the subject matter. To develop cognitive skills for interpretation and categorization, personalize memorization and apply the learned material to the study of other medical disciplines. To develop linguistic skills for using and compiling glossaries, for drawing thesaurus maps and association maps, To develop skills for working in groups on a common project, for presenting, and translating To acquire professional attitude towards medical sciences in terms of ethics, code, shared values and status Etymology networks are not strictly a linguistic term, but rather an expression of the interconnectedness between history, language and science. It is a way for words and ancient languages to take an active role in education and to bring the essential worldviews and ideas of the Ancient Greeks and Romans into medical education. In the interconnectedness of vocabulary and language it is important to make connections between the terms to ensure the associative map triggers better acquisition and understanding. Connections between combining forms (common prefixes, affixes or roots) – morphological level Connections between synonyms and/or antonyms – semantic level Connections between common roots and derivations with variations of meaning – morpho-semantic level Connections – differences or similarities between the historical origins and current use of the terms related to scientific development Connections between systems and organs and diseases of the body Connections between languages– English/ French/ Greek and Latin or other local terms Connections between thematic areas of phraseology – idiomatic and set expressions of Multi-word units – lexical and syntactic levels During one semester students were given short introductions into specific terminology of nine body systems. The terms were presented in English and Latin and explained in English. The etymology of the words was provided whenever possible and students were stimulated to search for additional meanings and applications of the combining forms mentioned in class. Naturally, the repeating prefixes or affixes were one of the ways to draw maps around morphemes and to link them to further vocabulary acquisition. The most common combining forms regarded the position, anatomical directions, amount, size, normal and pathological conditions, and therapeutic procedures. Students informed of increased understanding of terminology not only in English, but also in their core subjects, especially Anatomy and Physiology. The other focus of the project dealt with the fictional side of the vocabulary used in class. It aimed to enrich students’ knowledge and be a formative element in their medical education. Many students reported that they combined the task with searching information in other languages (there were five native Greek students in the group), which added an extra multicultural dimension in their project work. There were also reports of the active use of online etymology dictionaries, such as http://www.etymonline.com/ and Haubrich’s Medical Meanings (Haubrich:2003). Another useful source proved to be Dunmore’s Medical Terminology (Dunmore:1985). Students were free to browse various resources and to extend their maps and projects by including terms from other languages as well. Another interesting side of this work was the compilation of a glossary of expressions for the selected body system. The expressions varied from just a few to more than twenty in some cases and presented the variety of idiomatic English used nowadays in spoken and written forms. Students were also prompted to find out creative translations for some of the expressions, and humour was soon introduced into the classroom by means of rephrasing, amusing equivalents and interpretations of otherwise difficult foreign idioms related to the human or animal body. The expressions translated for their final project proved that students could engage in the act of recreating, and by doing so to transform themselves from passive learners into authors, which increased their interest and input, effort and stimulated their thinking. To receive feedback, students were interviewed and their comments regarding their learning performance mentioned improvement in learning new vocabulary, compiling glossaries based on etymology, understanding linguistic relations (recognizing combining forms and guessing the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary based on etymology networks), creating networks or connections within and between linguistic, historical, and scientific domains. They also listed improvement in their historical knowledge about the origin of terms; using terms with better awareness of their meaning, and last, but not least, they felt an inseparable part of the history of the medical profession and acquired a sense of belonging to the medical society. Another remark noted that a certain student had reconsidered the place of language in medical context and communication. Conclusion When the students acquire their identity as doctors, they see their studies differently. They learn more, they are motivated, more interested in how the language shapes their communication with books, colleagues (dead or living), their clients and possibly – their future students. For some, etymology is just an interesting fact of knowledge, for others it is a tool to memorize and explain. For all, however, it is a link and exploration into the origins of meaning and communication. Works Cited: Dunmore, Ch. (1985) Medical Terminology: Exercises in Etymology. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: F.A. Davis Company. Haubrich, W. (2003) Medical Meanings. A Glossary of Word Origins. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: American College of Physicians. 18