June 02, 2021

#43 – Why do we call them the “Dog Days of Summer”? & the Latest in Words You Should Know

9 minutes

A few stolen minutes out of your day to talk words and communication, because our daily lives are surrounded by the evolution and influence of words. Forget the grammar police. There is so much more to this conversation.

Episode #43 – Why do we call them the “Dog Days of Summer”? & the Latest in Words You Should Know

Approximate transcript:

Welcome to episode number 43, where we’ll talk about the specific dog connected with the “dog days of summer” or the specific mythological dog, or… well, we’ll get there. Is a summer vacation on your mind? Well, no matter your answer, today’s episode can take you there.

But first, here’s…

The Latest in Word, Language & Writing News

Today, we’re not going into brain science, animal science, or technology, but we’re revisiting the niche of discovered words. Specifically, have you heard that:

A grad student at Oxford University doing archival research in the Yale Beinecke Library of Rare Books and Manuscripts in New Haven uncovered long lost poetry of William Carlos Williams written on old prescription pads that the poet used for notes and collecting his ideas. William Carlos Williams is the modernist poet of the red wheelbarrow if that’s helpful for you in placing him. Just imagine coming across this find!

A similar reemergence of some other poets is worth mentioning as well. When you think of the late Middle Ages, you might think of religious works being the major force in the literary world; however, a team of academics has recently revived the names and influence of early Italian vernacular poets, as in poets using the language of everyday, common speech of the time, on the artists of the later Renaissance. And all of this comes from references about a long lost manuscript that was a treasure passed between the Italian nobility of the 1400s and 1500s. Their letters, as well as partial copies and excerpts of the original manuscript, which was lost sometime in the 16th century, brought the importance of little known poets to the forefront, including contemporaries of Dante, the author of The Divine Comedy, which is largely considered one of the greatest literary works in Italian history (and side note: not written in the everyday, common speech you’d hear on the street of Dante’s neighborhood). But Dante was not on an island, and getting to know his poetic peers is fascinating, no?

In other medieval manuscript news, there’s also a breaking story of a wife swap captured in the illustrations in one illuminated manuscript, where a husband literally painted over a depiction of his first wife, who had died, to personalize a book for his second wife, (seriously? Yep. I mean, dude, come on!) But I suppose this news story is starting to stray out of the topic of language and into the artistic. But thank you, modern infrared technology. More links, as always, are in my show notes.

But let’s get to the heart of today’s episode, or maybe I should say the heat of it.

English Language History & Trivia

It may not quite be summer while I’m recording this, but it’s definitely starting to feel very close. At least here in Virginia. And this brings to mind a common phrase that you might not know the true origin of.

“The dog days of summer.”

What comes to mind? A tired, hot doggo, resting its snoot on its paws? Or tongue panting, too exhausted to do anything because of the heat?

Right. So many of our minds go there, but if this is where you think the “dog days” came from, you might have another think coming.

The “dog days” of summer are ancient, long before the invention of ice cubes for your lemonade or sprinklers you could play in.

This expression actually refers to Canis Major, a canine constellation. Sirius, the star also nicknamed “the dog star” and famous for being the brightest star in the sky, is Canis Major’s nose, and this star and its connected constellation rise in the sky with very specific position starting in late July in the northern hemisphere, just as the heat of the summer intensifies to its peak. Canis Major was known as Orion the hunter’s dog, and in the sky, not only is he with Orion, but he also seems to be chasing another constellation, Lupis, a hare.

As far back as the writing of the epic poem, The Iliad, Sirius is referred to as Orion’s dog, and this star is an omen of heat of many kinds, including anger and violence.

There’s an ancient scientific theory that because the dog star, Sirius, appears rise in the sky just before the sun at this time of year, its proximity to the sun allowed its own brightness to intensify the heat of the day. Of course, as we now know, that’s just not how seasonal heat works. But the name stuck nonetheless.

“The Dog Days” after that darn dog star that heats things up.

The dog days were translated from Latin into English about five hundred years ago, and it’s been an expression that’s had some saying power, even if we don’t always make the correct connections with it.

So that’s what “the dog days of summer” refers to, though all the panting dogs out there certainly feel it too. I hear you.

And since we’re talking summertime and stars, did you know that the word “Solstice” comes from “sol” (for sun) and “stit-,” for standing still. Because it’s at the summer and winter solstice that sunrise and sunsets almost seem to freeze in time for a few days, getting barely earlier or later, depending on the season, reaching the peak, then going in the opposite direction. The sun standing still. Well almost. Scientific precision isn’t always captured in language, but the evolution of scientific thought sometimes is. And how cool is that?

In Latin, it was solstitium. Middle English speakers made their tweaks, and thus, we’ve had “solstice” since the 1200s.

All this talk about Latin, is it revving you up for an awesome summer? Okay, maybe not. But whether you have man’s best friend or not, here’s hoping the dog days treat you well.

Language Challenge

Now if you need a break from all this summertime talk, let’s talk ice for today’s language challenge.

Think about the chilly Arctic, icebergs, snow, glaciers, and specifically ice floes. An iceberg, as you know is much like a mountain, but an ice floe is a flat piece of ice floating along in the chilly water. But how do you spell “ice floe”? Think you’ve got it?

The answers, as always, can be found on my website, at GetAGripOnYourGrammar.com.

Personal Update:

This episode’s personal update is more of an update about the show than my own work. This will be our last episode for a couple of months as we’ll be taking a much needed summer break, but the Words You Should Know podcast won’t just be going away. I’ve planned a summer series of popular older episodes that will be revived as encores as well as showcases of past “Story Stop Tour” events of recent months, so I’ll have plenty to keep sharing until new episodes resume in September.

You take care, folks, and as I’m shaping our next new episodes, definitely let me know what you like, what you’re interested in, what you’re not interested in, so I can make sure to continue this podcast in a way you’ll enjoy.

Take care, folks. May your words treat you well!

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If you like what you’ve been hearing, don’t forget to subscribe to this podcast (via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Android, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or RSS) so you’ll never miss out on another word you should know. Many thanks to those of you who have taken the time to rate my show wherever you listen.

Words. Language. Communications. We’ve got this.

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