Today, I found out that die Wand and the wand. I’ve actually known die Wand for a while, but I never noticed this.
Die Wand, or die Wände in plural, is the German word for the wall.
- Thomas hängt sein Foto an die Wand.
- Thomas puts his picture on the wall.
Of course I was curious why the two word, English wand and German Wand, ended up with such different meanings. And turns out, they’re not so different after all. They both belong to the family of wending.
The English wand originally simply referred to a single flexible stick and then got more specific and more magical over time. And the German Wand.. well that originally referred to a wall that was wattled from many such flexible sticks.
Speaking of wand… that reminds me of my book idea. A school for magicians, where some young kids have some adventures and slowly grow up. And one, Ron Potter, of them has a connection to the villain. I had a complete outline but then I forgot my notes on the train. I wonder where they are now.
Oh well, probably in the trash.