As an engineer, I've always been fascinated as colleagues go off to other jobs, presumably better paying, in the large, nebulous field of "finance." And so yesterday I took a look at my dictionaries to see what the origins of the word might be.
1990 dictionary: from the Old French "finans," or "ransom."
Noah Webster's 1828: from Latin and French words meaning a "fine."
Hmmmm.....I may yet decide to start demanding ransoms or fines for a living, or I may realize that modern word usage isn't completely hostage to etamology. Hopefully the latter, but I figured my "vast readership" might enjoy the irony of one of our most respected (and disrespected) professions having its root in feudal hostage-taking.
Podcast #1047: The Roman Caesars’ Guide to Ruling
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The Roman caesars were the rulers of the Roman Empire, beginning in 27 BC
with Julius Caesar’s heir Augustus, from whom subsequent caesars took their
nam...
7 hours ago
2 comments:
The financial services (read Banks) basically pirate your money.
I guess that makes me a pirate!
Arrrgggh!
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