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Reference.org
Folk etymology
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<p>Folk etymology – also known as (generative) popular etymology, analogical reformation, (morphological) reanalysis and etymological reinterpretation – is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more familiar one through popular usage. The form or the meaning of an archaic, foreign, or otherwise unfamiliar word is reinterpreted as resembling more familiar words or <a href="/facts/Morpheme/4JNcPMHs">morphemes</a>. </p><p>The term <i>folk etymology</i> is a <a href="/facts/Loan_translation/A9M3UtAo">loan translation</a> from <a href="/facts/German_language/oWaQIDA8">German</a> <i>Volksetymologie</i>, coined by <a href="/facts/Ernst_F%C3%B6rstemann/nEVe0ANX">Ernst Förstemann</a> in 1852. Folk etymology is a <a href="/facts/Productivity_(linguistics)/px1fUjDw">productive</a> process in <a href="/facts/Historical_linguistics/nj5y6HDR">historical linguistics</a>, <a href="/facts/Language_change/ycYsECY0">language change</a>, and <a href="/facts/Social_relation/DU3HW2Ah">social interaction</a>. Reanalysis of a word's history or original form can affect its spelling, pronunciation, or meaning. This is frequently seen in relation to <a href="/facts/Loanword/PWGYczgY">loanwords</a> or words that have become archaic or obsolete. </p><p>Folk/popular etymology may also refer to a popular false belief about the etymology of a word or phrase that does not lead to a change in the form or meaning. To disambiguate the usage of the term "folk/popular etymology", <a href="/facts/Ghil%27ad_Zuckermann/63hhpKLL">Ghil'ad Zuckermann</a> proposes a clear-cut distinction between the <a href="/facts/Derivational-only_popular_etymology/cpr2AGUK">derivational-only popular etymology</a> (DOPE) and the generative popular etymology (GPE): the DOPE refers to a popular false etymology involving no <a href="/facts/Neologization/vlq6w82X">neologization</a>, and the GPE refers to neologization generated by a popular false etymology. </p><p>Examples of words created or changed through folk etymology include the English dialectal form sparrowgrass, originally from Greek ἀσπάραγος ("<a href="/facts/Asparagus/MoI6GaCN">asparagus</a>") remade by analogy to the more familiar words <i>sparrow</i> and <i>grass</i>. When the alteration of an unfamiliar word is limited to a single person, it is known as an <a href="/facts/Eggcorn/xfg5Uz03">eggcorn</a>. </p>