What is etymology and folk-etymology?

In Archive by Fredy Ore

Etymology is the study of the origins of words. Through old texts and comparison with other languages, etymologists reconstruct the history of words – when they entered a language, from what source, and how their form and meaning changed.

Reference: Wikipedia’s definition of Etymology, viewed 10 September 2006.


See also:
– Wikipedia’s definition of Folk etymology.
– Wikipedia’s definition of False etymology.