Words with Stories
Words that kept something from where they have been.
A word carries a story of its own. Together, these words tell larger ones. Choose a collection to follow the connections.
The Sky Above Us
How stars, the Moon and the search for signals shaped the ways people explain their lives.
The Inner Life
How people named longing, sadness, fear and wanting.
The Names That Remained
When people and fictional characters became everyday words.
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Words That Travelled
The routes by which trade, encounters and learning reshaped English.
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The Hours We Invented
How people divided time and set limits around it.
Learning to Learn
How the places and practices of knowledge acquired their names.
Living Together
The images hidden in words for companionship and conflict.
Work and Worth
The history of labour, resources, money and the value assigned to them.
Words Made on Purpose
Words that began with someone choosing a name.
Seeing & Light
The openings, objects and images that gave us words for seeing.
The Body
The names of bodies, disease and the ways people tried to understand them.
Public Life
How assemblies, candidates, voting and public office were named.
Words That Changed Shape
The unexpected turns a word can take between one use and another.
How We Judge
How words of praise, blame and respect changed their meaning.