12.19.2005

Name Etymology Haiku Meme -- What do those four word have to do with one another, you ask? I poached this idea from Jon: look up the meaning of each of your names, and construct a haiku that incorporates them all. I like this idea, but coincidentally all three of my names have contested etymologies. Emily comes from the Latin surname Aemilius, meaning "rival," but it's often conflated with Amalia/Amelia, from the German for "industrious." Katherine is all over the place: Greek words for "torture," "purity," "consecration," or the phrase "each of the two" are all possible, as is the goddess Hecate (three-headed mistress of hounds from the underworld, of course). And as for Durand, it's back to Latin: from the root duro, to abide or bear, to make strong. Thus:

Race me to Hades
I'll get there first, stay a while
I can stand the heat

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