When Thomas Savage attempted to develop the first scientific classification of the large primate we know as the gorilla, he reached back over 2,000 years and found a word in a long-filed and nearly-forgotten report.
Carthaginian admiral Hanno traveled around 60 BC from Carthage (in present-day Tunisia) down the western coast of Africa. Along the way, he encountered hairy, aggressive creatures he called “gorillai” (Γόριλλαι). It was this term Thomas Savage used in naming the modern-day gorilla.
Interestingly enough, that original term can best be interpreted as “a tribe of hairy women.”
When Politeness Had Rules: The Strange Etiquette Rules Everyone Once Knew and We Somehow Forgot
From bowing and calling cards to chaperones and gloves, discover the strange old etiquette rules everyone once knew—and why they disappeared.
Radio Quito’s 1949 War of the Worlds Broadcast: The Hoax That Turned Deadly
In 1949, Radio Quito staged a War of the Worlds broadcast so convincing that panic turned deadly when an angry crowd burned the station.
Edward Pennington and the “Puncture-Proof” Tire That Burst Anyway
Edward Pennington claimed his 1896 Autocar had “impuncturable” tires. Then one burst during the famous London-to-Brighton Emancipation Run.
Leave a Reply