One morning I made French toast for my three grandchildren, ages 8, 7, and 5. The youngest said, “Is French toast from France?” A bit of research showed that this tasty treat (a good use of stale bread) has been around for hundreds of years, so long that no one knows its exact origin. One story is that Joseph French, a chef who lived in America in the 1700s, called it after himself. A more likely theory is that French toast got its name from French immigrants who popularized it in America.

That question reminded me that toponyms, words that come from place names, can be lots of fun. Baloney comes from Bologna, Italy, and brussel sprouts comes from Brussels, Belgium. We can thank Denmark for Danish pastry. And, even though it sounds like it came from Holland, the French gave us Hollandaise sauce, supposedly in honor of a visiting Dutch king.

Toponyms aren’t all food words. That duffel bag you pack—it’s named after Duffel, a town in Belgium where it was first made. Madras cloth is attributed to Madras, India, now Chennai. Calico cloth is named after Calicut, India. If you fellows want to be more formal in your dress, you can always wear a tuxedo, thanks to Tuxedo Park, New York.

The next time you visit a mall, thank the folks in England for its name. They played a croquet-like game called pall-mall in an open area called a mall.

You can find lists of toponyms on the internet. For ongoing fun, start looking for unusual place names in your neighborhood. There are streets in the United States named Lonesome Road, Rolling Thunder Drive, Tapeworm Road., and Flood Street. (Could those names have hidden meanings? Would you want to live on Flood Street?) This activity will build vocabulary—and keep your kids busy when you’re on the road.

 

Suzanne Barchers, EdD