The VANDALS were a Germanic tribe that, in the 4th and 5th centuries C.E., ransacked much of the mainland of southwestern Europe, including Rome. The BERSERKERS were warriors from Old Norse literature who were alleged to have fought in a furious, trance-like manner. From these two characterizations we gained the words vandal and to vandalize; we also have berserk, berserker, and to go berserk. Note that neither group of people exists anymore; however, English speakers persist in assigning stereotypes to specific groups, usually by turning the group’s name into a verb. To quote the esteemed Bill Watterson, “verbing weirds language”!
Posted on: Tue, 28 Oct 2014 14:36:35 +0000
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