Drupelet

Drupelet (pronounced droop-lit)

In botany (plant anatomy), the small drupe, one of the individual subdivisions (pericarps) composing the outer layer of certain fruits such as blackberries or raspberries.

1875–1880: The construct was drupe (stone fruit), from the Scientific Latin, from the Latin drūpa (plum; over-ripe or wrinkled olive), from the Ancient Greek δρύππᾱ (drúppā) + -let (the diminutive suffix).  The –let suffix was from the Middle English –let & -elet, from the Old French -elet, a double diminutive from the Old French –el & -et.  It was used to create diminutive forms and in English is widely appended (booklet: a small book, applet: a small computer application, piglet: a young pig et al).  It’s applied almost exclusively to concrete nouns and except in jocular use (and unusually for a diminutive) never with names. When used with objects, it generally denotes something smaller; when used with animals, it is of their young form; when used of adult persons, it’s usually depreciative, connoting pettiness and conveying contempt.  A special use was in suits of armor where it denoted a piece of the larger whole, this sense carrying over to some aspects of military uniforms.  In the Late Latin, a drupella was a “small ripe olive”.  The synonym is drupel.  Drupelet & drupel are nouns, drupaceous & drupelike are adjectives; the noun plural is drupelets.

A handful of raspberries.

Drupelets are the individual subdivisions (pericarps) and technically are small individual fruits which comprise the aggregate, fleshy outer layer of certain fruits such as blackberries or raspberries, assembled over the seed within.  The bramble is in the large genus Rubus of flowering plants in the rose family (Rosaceae) including raspberries, blackberries and hybrids such as loganberries and boysenberries.  Typically erect or trailing shrubs with canelike stems (although some species are herbaceous), many spread vegetatively and are noted for the protective prickles along their branches.  Delighting botanists, many species freely hybridize with each other, making the task of classification more or less permanently a work in progress.  Strictly speaking, the aggregate fruits (such as the raspberry and blackberry) are not, despite their names, true berries.

The Razzie trophy (note the detailed druplets).

Dating from 1981, the Golden Raspberries Awards (known within the industry as “the Razzies” and it is the word Razzie which is printed on the physical trophy) was established as a parody of the annual Academy Awards (the Oscars) run since 1929 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.  The event, now conducted immediately before the Academy Awards, “honors” the worst of that year’s cinematic releases and in addition to a number of innovative categories, its awards mirror those of the academy including: Worst Picture, Worst Director, Worst Actor, Worst Actress, Worst Supporting Actor, Worst Supporting Actress & Worst Screenplay.  The name is based on "blowing a raspberry" which is to make a expression of derision or disapproval by blowing air through the lips (known in the US ironically as the "Bronx cheer").  Receiving regular or frequent nominations for a Razzie has not prevented several actors from enjoying successful careers and some have even personally accepted their awards; nor is there of necessity any relationship between Razzies and a film’s commercial success.  The relationship between the Razzies and the Oscars is rather like the Ig Noble prizes which are awarded to those who have published the findings of research which seems bizarre, absurd or unnecessary.  Just as there are researchers who have won both a Nobel & Ig Nobel prize, some in the entertainment business have taken home both Oscars and Razzies.  I Know Who Killed Me (2007) set a mark in 2008 by winning seven Razzies (though the record would stand for only two years), two of which went to Lindsay Lohan although some claimed she deserved four because in the film she played two parts (the characters may or may not have been twins); the film has since become a cult favorite and in a regular feature of special screenings.  It may be apocryphal but the industry lore is that the original design specification for the Razzie trophy stipulated only that each should cost less than US$1.  The statuette itself is a stylized plastic raspberry (the drupelets spray-painted gold) about the size of a golf ball-sized, mounted atop a base of used film canisters and a piece of timber onto which is glued paper printed with the organization’s logo.  It’s said the quality of the trophy hasn’t improved over the decades but the effects of inflation mean the unit cost now exceeds US$5.

Lindsay Lohan with Blackberry Bold, Los Angeles, 2008.

The conventional wisdom in the IT industry used to be that the only things which last for decades are operating systems and languages.  The ability of companies like Microsoft and Adobe to achieve critical mass at the application level has disproved that but the tendency for products to achieve a seemingly unassailable dominance only rapidly to fade from use or even disappear as the market preference switches to something new, remains a feature of the industry.  Early in the twenty-first century, Research In Motion's (RIM) Blackberry mobile phone (named because the keys of the mechanical keyboard (vaguely) resembled the fruit’s drupelets) dominated the upper (ie most expensive) segment of the mobile phone market and the famous keyboard played a part in that, being so pleasant to use in an era when the most important (non-telephonic) aspect of the mobile phone was the inherently text-focused e-mail.  However, what really sold the things to corporations was RIM’s security layers (the traffic ran exclusively through their own servers which were in secure facilities in regions like Western Europe & North America) which provided what was at the time the most secure form of civilian communication.  Blackberries quickly became a status symbol but their technical model was a cul-de-sac and Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android prevailed, Blackberry market share in rapid decline by 2011 and neither re-branding nor corporate restructures could save the company.  The modern smartphones are better than the Blackberry in every way except the keyboard because there is (as yet), no way in which a touch-screen can emulate the seductive, tactile experience of the mechanical. 

Coriaceous

Coriaceous (pronounced kawr-ee-ey-shuhs, kohr-ee-ey-shuhs or kor-ee-ey-shuhs)

(1) Of or resembling leather.

(2) In botany, a surface (usually a leaf) distinguished having the visual characteristics of leather.

1665-1675: from Late Latin coriāceus (resembling leather in texture, toughness etc), the construct being corium (skin, hide, leather (and also used casually to refer to belts, whips and other leather items, and upper layers (ie analogous with a skin or hide) in general such as crusts, coatings, peels or shells)), from the Proto-Italic korjom, from the primitive Indo-European sker & ker- + -aceous.  The suffix –aceous was from the New Latin, from the Classical Latin -aceus (of a certain kind) and related to the Latin adjectival suffixes –ac & -ax.  It was used (1) to create words meaning “of, relating to, resembling or containing the thing suffixed” and (2) in scientific classification, to indicate membership of a taxonomic family or other group.  The comparative is more coriaceous and the superlative most coriaceous.  Coriaceous & subcoriaceous are adjectives and coriaceousness is a noun.

Botanists classify coriaceous leaves by degree.  The common greenbrier (Smilax rotundifolia) (left) is listed as subcoriaceous (ie somewhat or almost coriaceous) while the Shining Fetterbush (Lyonia lucida) is distinguished by glossy coriaceous leaves with a prominent vein along margins (right).

In late 1967, as a prelude to the next year’s introduction of the XJ6, Jaguar rationalized its saloon car line-up, pruning the long-running Mark II range from three to two, dropping the 3.8 litre model and re-designating the smaller-engined pair (the 2.4 becoming the 240, the 3.4 the 340), thus bringing the nomenclature into line with the recently released 420.  The standardization exercise extended to the big Mark X which became the 420G but curiously the S-Type’s name wasn’t changed and it became the only Jaguar in which the 3.8 litre engine remained available as a regular production option, the E-Type (XKE) having earlier adopted the 4.2.  So the 240, 340, S-Type (3.4 & 3.8) and 420 (all based on the 1959 Mark 2 (itself a update of the 1955 2.4)) all remained in production, along with the Daimler 250 (the re-named 2.5 fitted with Daimler’s 2.5 litre V8) and to add a further quirk, a dozen 340s were built to special order with the 3.8 liter engine.  Production of all ceased in 1968 with the coming of the XJ6 except the big 420G (which lasted until 1970 although sales had for some time slowed to a trickle), the 240 (available until 1969 because Jaguar wasn’t until then able to offer the 2.8 liter option in the XJ6) and the Daimler 250 (which also ran until 1969 until the Daimler Sovereign (an XJ6 with a Daimler badge) entered the showrooms).

1967 Jaguar Mark 2 3.8 with leather trim (left) and a "de-contented" 1968 Jaguar 240 with the "slimline" bumpers, Ambla trim and optional  rimbellishers (right).

Given the new revised naming convention wasn’t carried over the XJ6 (rendering the 420G an alpha-numeric orphan for the last year of its existence), there’s since been speculation about whether the Jaguar management had a change of mind about how the XJ6 was to be labeled or the changes were just an attempt to stimulate interest in the rather dated Mark 2 and its derivatives.  That certainly worked though perhaps not quite as Jaguar intended because Mark 2 sales spiked in 1968 and the oldest models (240 & 340) handsomely outsold both the newer 420 and the by then moribund S-Type.  Probably the change in name had little to do with this and more significant was the price cutting which made the 240 & 340 suddenly seem like bargains, the 240 especially.  Dated they might have looked in the year the NSU Ro80 debuted, but they still had their charm and the new price drew in buyers whereas the 420 suffered because it was known the XJ6 would soon be available and expectations were high.

The renewed interest in the 240 was at least partly because Jaguar had finally devoted some attention to the breathing of its smallest engine, straight-port heads and revised SU carburetors increasing the power to the point where a genuine 100 mph (160 km/h) could be attained, something not possible since the lighter 2.4 (retrospectively known as the Mark 1) ended production in 1959.  The 100 mph thing was something the factory was quite sensitive about because in the 1950s (when it was still quite an achievement) it had been a selling point and for most of the Mark 2’s life, Jaguar were reluctant to make 2.4s available for testing.  The 240’s new performance solved that problem and it was the biggest seller of the revised range (4446 240s vs 2800 340s) although those who read the small print might have been disappointed to note the fuel consumption; both models weighed about the same but the small engine had to work much harder, the 340 barely more thirsty.

1962 Jaguar Mark 2 3.8 with leather trim (left) and 1968 Jaguar 240 with Ambla trim.  It was only when the optional leather trim was specified that the fold-down "picnic tables" were fitted in the front seat-backs. 

The real thing: Lindsay Lohan in leather (albeit with faux fur sleeves).

Still, with the 240 selling in 1968 for only £20 more than the what a 2.4 had cost in 1955, it was soon tagged “the best Jaguar bargain of all time” but that had been achieved with some cost-cutting, some of the trademark interior wood trim deleted, the fog and spot lamps replaced by a pair of chromed grilles, the hubcap design simplified and “slimline” bumpers fitted in place of the substantial units in place since 1959, this not only saving weight but a remarkable amount of the cost of production.  The revised cars were not as generously equipped as before (although some of the “de-contenting” had been introduced late in Mark 2 production) but a long option list remained and on it were some items once fitted as standard, the list including a choice of five radio installations with or without rear parcel shelf-mounted speaker, a laminated windscreen, chromium-plated wheel rimbellishers for steel wheels, Ace Turbo wheel trims for steel wheels, a tow bar, a locking petrol filler cap, front seat belts, the choice of radial, town and country, or whitewall tyres, automatic transmission, overdrive (for the manual transmission), wire wheels, fast ratio steering box, a fire extinguisher, Powr-Lok differential, rear window demister, heavy-duty anti-roll bar, close-ratio gearbox, tinted glass, a driver’s wing mirror, childproof rear door locks, an integrated ignition & starter switch (steering column), reclining front seats, power-assisted steering & leather upholstery.

It was the moving of the leather trim to the option list which is said to have made the greatest contribution to the price cuts.  The replacement fabric was Ambla, one of a class of coriaceous materials which have come variously to be referred to as faux leather, pleather, vegan leather, Naugahyde, synthetic leather, artificial leather, fake leather & ersatz leather.  First manufactured in the US, most production now is done in China as well as upholstery, the fabric is use for just about anything which has ever been made in leather including clothing, footwear, gloves, hats, belts, watch bands, cases, handbags, sports items, firearm holsters, luggage and a myriad besides.  It does appear that as early as the fifteenth century, the Chinese were experimenting with ways synthetic leather could be manufactured but it doesn’t appear anything was ever produced at scale and it was only when petroleum-based plastics became available in the US in the late nineteenth century that it became viable to mass produce a viable alternative to leather.  Historically, most of the products were petroleum-based but vegetable-based alternatives are now attracting much interest as attention has focused on the environmental impact of the traditional petro-chemical based approach.

1967 Mercedes-Benz 250 SE with MB-Tex trim (left) and 1971 Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3 with leather trim.

One of the best known coriaceous materials in the 1960s and 1970s was MB-Tex, a vinyl used by Mercedes-Benz which by far was the synthetic which most closely resembled genuine leather.  That was something made easier by the Germans using a process which resulted in slightly thicker tanned hide than those from Italy, Spain or England and this meant that replicating the appearance was more easily attained.  What most distinguished MB-Tex however was the durability and longevity.  Unlike leather which demanded some care and attention to avoid wear and cracking, it wasn’t uncommon for 20 or 30 year old MB-Tex to look essentially as it did when new and many who sat in them for years may have assumed it really was leather.  It certainly took an expert eye to tell the difference although in a showroom, moving from one to another, although the visual perception might be much the same, the olfactory senses would quickly know which was which because nothing compares with the fragrance of a leather-trimmed interior.  For some, that seduction was enough to persuade although those who understood the attraction of the close to indestructible MB-Tex, there were aerosol cans of “leather smell”, each application said to last several weeks.

For the incomparable aroma of leather.

The factory continued to develop MB-Tex, another of its attractions being that unlike leather, it could be produced in just about any color although, now colors (except black, white and shades of grey) have more or less disappeared from interior schemes, that functionality is not the advantage it once was.  As a fabric though, it reached the point where Mercedes-Benz dropped the other choices and eventually offered only leather or a variety of flavors of MB-Tex.  That disappointed some who remembered the velour and corduroy fittings especially popular in the colder parts of Europe but the factory insisted MB-Tex was superior in every way.  Also lamented were the exquisite (though rarely ordered) mohair interiors available for the 600 Grosser (W100, 1963-1981).  Apparently, the factory would trim a 600 in MB-Tex upon request but nobody ever was that post modern and most buyers preferred the leather, however coriaceous might have been the alternative.

Mint

Mint (pronounced mint)

(1) Any aromatic herb of the genus genus Mentha (family Lamiaceae (labiates)), having opposite, aromatic leaves and spikes of small, typically mauve, whorled flowers.  The leaves of some species are used for seasoning and flavoring (peppermint, spearmint, horsemint, water mint. mint sauce etc).

(2) A soft or hard confection or candy flavored with spearmint or peppermint.

(3) A shade of green, classically a light hue with a cool, bluish undertone but many commercial products so-named are quite vivid.

(4) Something made or flavored with mint.

(5) Of or pertaining to the color mint.

(6) To make (coins, medals etc.) by stamping metal; to turn (metal) into coins.

(7) In crypto-currencies, to create a crypto token.

(8) A place where coins and special medals (and in some places paper currency) etc are, now always under government authority if the production of legal tender is involved.

(9) A place where something is produced or manufactured.

(10) In slang, to make, fabricate or invent (including weightless items such as words).

(11) In slang (as “a mint”, “made a mint” etc), a vast amount, especially of money.

(12) In slang, excellent; impressive (mostly northern England)

(13) In slang, attractive; beautiful; handsome (most of the English Speaking world except North America).

(14) In philately (of a stamp) and numismatics (of currency), being in its original, unused condition (use now extended to (1) any item in such condition and (2) an item which has been restored or renovated to a state where it can be described as “as new” (ie appearing to be newly made and never used, even if once dilapidated)).

(15) Intent; purpose; an attempt; try; effort (mostly northern England & Scotland).

(16) To take aim at with a firearm (rare and mostly northern England & Scotland).

(17) To hit or strike at someone or something (rare).

Pre 900: From the Middle English mynt & münet (money, coin), from the Old English mynet (coin, coinage, money), from the late Proto-West Germanic munit, from the Latin monēta (place for making coins, coined money) and named after the temple of Juno Monēta (named for Monēta,mother of the Muses), the mint where Roman money was coined.  A doublet of money and manat, the verb was from the noun; the Old English mynetian (to mint) was a parallel formation.  The use to describe “mean, intent, aim etc” was also pre 900 and was from the Middle English verb minten, munten & munte (to intend, plan, think of), from the Old English myntan & gemyntan (to mean, intend, purpose, determine, resolve), the noun a derivative of the verb, from the Proto-West Germanic muntijan (to think, consider), from the primitive Indo-European men- & mnā- (to think),  It was cognate with the Saterland Frisian mintsje & muntsje (to aim, target), the Dutch munten (to aim at, target), the German Low German münten (to aim at), the German münzen (to aim at), the Dutch monter (cheerful, gladsome, spry), the Gothic muns, (thought, opinion) and the Old English munan (to be mindful of, consider, intend).  The use in botany may have been earlier but certainly was in use by the tenth century.  It was from the Middle English mynte, from the eighth century Old English minte (the mint plant), from the Proto-West Germanic mintā (leaf of the mint) (source also of Old Saxon minta, the Middle Dutch mente, the Old High German minza and the German Minze), from the Latin mentha & menta of uncertain origin but probably from a lost Mediterranean language via either the Ancient Greek μίνθη (mínthē) & μίνθα (míntha) or directly.  It was akin to the Old Norse minta (mint) and the Old High German minza.  In Greek mythology, minthē was personified as a nymph transformed into an herb by Proserpine.

Lindsay Lohan with mint hair (digitally altered image).

The general sense of “a vast sum of money” was in use by the 1650s and the term “mint-mark” (mark placed upon a coin to indicate the mint where it was struck) was formalized in 1797.  The verb in the sense of “to stamp metal to make coins” dates from the 1540s and was developed from the noun; minting soon followed.  In the Old English, the agent noun was mynetere which became the twelfth century Middle English minter (one who stamps coins to create money; place where coins are stamped), from the Late Latin monetarius.  The adjective minty (full of or tasting of mint) was documented since 1867 (mintesque seems never to have been coined) while the related noun mintiness was first noted in the 1920s.  Mint is a noun, verb & adjective; minting is a noun & verb, minted is a verb & adjective and minty is an adjective, the noun plural is mints.

Minties: 54.3% sugar and inclined to extract fillings, they are income generators for dentists.

Introduced in Australia in 1922, the Mintie is a mint-flavored confectionery which is hard, white, chewy and prone while chewing to enter such a state of stickiness that it's not unusual for dental fillings to be dislodged.  Despite this, essentially unchanged, they've been popular in Australia and New Zealand for over a century, some half a billion are sold annually and they're available in many outlets around the world.  In some places they have a cult following and in London there's a shop which offers a text-messaging service to advise customers when the sticky treat is again in stock, the Mintie addicts apparently not only homesick colonials.  The company's It's moments like these you need Minites advertising campaign in the 1920s was responsible for a catch-phrase entering the local vernacular, the truncated “It's moments like these” still heard when something unfortunate has happened.

In September 2023, Rupert Murdoch (b 1931) announced he was standing down from executive roles within the News organization to become Chairman Emeritus.  It came as a surprise because many had assumed he’d intended to die “in the saddle” and after all, he is 92 so people needed just to be patient.  But he (sort of) retired instead and that triggered the inevitable speculation about hidden agendas and ulterior motives, the things which for decades have been attributed to Mr Murdoch’s every action.  It’ll be interesting to watch the dynamics this unleashes in the Murdoch family but it may be that now he’s again single, Mr Murdoch just wants more time for dating.  One almost immediate impact of his (at least symbolic) departure was a lapse in journalist standards within the corporation, a piece run on the news.com.au website including a mistake which once would never have got past a sub-editor.  The story was about a US$10,000 bill “minted” during the 1930s.

News.com.au, 26 September 2023.

In the US, dollar bills are not “minted”, they are “printed”, the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing responsible for the production of paper currency while coins are produced by the United States Mint.  The $10,000 bill in question was rated as “mint condition” by the authoritative Paper Money Guarantee (PMG), a third-party operation which assesses and certifies paper money and sold for US$480,000 at the Long Beach Expo currency auction in Dallas, Texas, a record for the type.  The high-value US bills are now quite a novelty, the Treasury in 1969 purging from the system all “large value bills” (ie anything above US$100) and while even then $500 & $1000 bills were still in circulation, the older issues (up to $10,000) had vanished from general use and were restricted to institutional and inter-departmental purposes.

Mint fan Lindsay Lohan with Prada Mint Satchel Tote Bag (May 2012, left), in mint green dress (February 2012, centre) and mint green bathing suit (July 2017, right).

Mintbacks: During the 1930s, there was even a US$100,000 bill but it was technically a “Treasury Gold Certificate” which never entered circulation, use restricted to transactions between branches of the Federal Reserve.  It’s interesting to speculate what a $100,000 Treasury Gold Certificate in mint condition would achieve at auction.  It would obviously have a value to numismatists because of the historical significance and collectors would be drawn to such a rarity but these certificates have not been redeemable for gold (or indeed US$) since Richard Nixon (1913-1994; US president 1969-1974) abandoned the gold standard in 1971.

Clockwise from top left: 1971 Holden Monaro GTS 350, 1970 Plymouth ‘Cuda 440-6, 1972 Ford Falcon XA GT, 1973 Triumph Stag, 1970 Plymouth Road Runner Superbird and 1971 Chrysler Valiant Charger R/T E38.

The combination of advances in manufacturing techniques and the psychedelic vibe of the late 1960s inspired manufacturers to offer some lurid shades.  It was the first time since the 1920s that purple gained some popularity but bright greens were also fashionable and in marketing departments, imaginations were allowed to wander as names were conjured.  It probably never was true that weed and acid were much involved in the process but the names certainly read as if they were and they included: Plum Crazy, In-Violet, Tor Red, Sassy Grass, Panther Pink, Sub Lime, Lime Light, Moulin Rouge, Top Banana, Lemon Twist & Citron Yella.  Although it may be an industry myth, the story told is that Plum Crazy & In-Violet (vivid shades of purple) were late additions because the killjoy board refused to sign-off on Statutory Grape.  Some of the colors used in the US were too bright to be called “mint” and the ones which were closer didn’t adopt the description but in Australia, Holden had what most would consider a “lime” green but they anyway called it “Lina Mint”, a name apparently just too good to resist.  After 1973, the bright colors vanished from the color charts for some 25 years because the use of lead in paint was banned and it wasn’t until the twenty-first century alternatives were produced at viable cost.

The Mint Julep

Mint Julep served in Julip Tin.

Famously associated with the Kentucky Derby which is one leg of the racing’s Triple Crown, the origins of the mint julep lie in ancient Persia where it was a non-alcoholic drink made with rosewater.  Julep was from the Middle English, from the Old French julep, from the Medieval Latin julapium (via the Arabic جُلَاب‎ (julāb)), from the Persian گلاب‎ (golâb) (rosewater), the construct being گل‎ (rose) + آب‎ (water).  The refreshing drink was one of the many cultural exports from the Orient which reached Europe in the seventeenth century and from there it travelled across the Atlantic where, gradually, it evolved into something alcoholic.  Like other such concoctions in post-colonial America, the julep for some time straddled the gray area of respectability between sometimes dubious medicinal preparations and party drinks and it wasn’t until the commercial ice trade expanded early in the nineteenth century it became really popular.  Now most associated with whiskey, the early recipes in the US all suggested using French brandy or cognac but as the great national switch to whiskey gained momentum in the later 1800s, the mint julep in its familiar modern form became the standard.

Ingredients

65ml bourbon
10 mint leaves
12.5ml of 2:1 sugar syrup
A big sprig of mint

Method

Prepare the 2:1 sugar syrup by dissolving 1 cup of sugar in ½ cup of water over a low heat.  Leave to cool, and then store in a bottle with a suitable pouring neck.  This will make about 1 cup of sugar syrup.  Use either a highball or julep tin and keep them under refrigeration for long enough for them to be ice-cold.  A mint julep must be served really cold.

Shake the ingredients with ice and strain into a highball glass or julep tin filled with crushed ice. Churn gently with a long-handled spoon and top with more crushed ice.  Because the scent of mint is the julep’s signature, give the mint garnish a couple of sharp claps between your palms before tucking it into the glass; this will release the aromatic oils.  Some experiment with different types of mint (apple mint, chocolate mint, spearmint et al) while other insist on sticking to the classics.  A straw is essential and the ideal ones to use are stainless steel because (1) they better maintain the temperature and (2) will last decades and reduce plastic waste.

Ash

Ash (pronounced ash)

(1) The powdery, nonvolatile products and residue formed when matter is burnt; that which remains after burning; any of certain compounds formed by burning.

(2) In geology, finely pulverized lava thrown out by a volcano in eruption (technically volcanic ash).

(3) In chemistry, the non-aqueous remains of a material subjected to any complete oxidation process.

(4) Human (or animal) remains after cremation and either buried, scattered or stored in a crypt or container (usually styled as an “urn” regardless of style (always in the plural).

(5) Figuratively, mortal remains in general (always in the plural).

(6) Figuratively, the residue of anything (structures, institutions, movements, ideas, hopes etc), especially following disasters or catastrophes.

(7) In arboreal classification, any of the various oleaceous trees of the genus Fraxinus, of the olive family (especially F. excelsior of Europe and Asia or F. americana (white ash) of North America), having opposite, pinnate leaves, winged seeds and purplish flowers in small clusters.

(8) In arboreal classification, any of several trees resembling the ash, such as the mountain ash (and in Australia, any of several trees resembling the ash, especially of the eucalyptus genus).

(9) The tough, straight, close-grained wood of any of these trees, highly valued as timber because of its durability, widely used for the handles of tools (shovels, pick-axes etc) and once the choice material for the frames of many early automobiles.

(10) The largely archaic æsc (the symbols Æ & æ) (ash) from the Old English (the plural æscas).  The digraph æ represents a front vowel approximately like that of the “a” in the Modern English “hat” and the character is used also used to represent this sound in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA).

(11) A light silvery grey colour, often with a brownish tinge.

(12) As the ash-blonde hair color, a spectrum expressed in solid and variegated forms which blends or interpolates various classic blondes, silver-greys, and the lighter shades of brown.

(13) The acronym for Action on Smoking & Health, non-governmental organizations (NGO) in eth UK, Ireland & New Zealand, chartered as a charities (though through interaction with government they function sometimes in a way similar to QANGOs).

(14) To removed the burned tobacco from the end of a burning cigar or cigarette (usually by “flicking”, “tapping” or tapping the unburned section on the rim of an ashtray  The used to describe emptying the ask from the bowl of an extinguished pipe is less common.

(15) In agriculture, to cover newly-sown fields of crops with ashes.

Pre 950: From the Middle English asshe & aisshe (powdery remains of fire), from the Old English asce & æsce, from the Proto-West Germanic askā, from the Proto-Germanic askǭ, from the primitive Indo-European hes-.  It was cognate with the Frisian esk, the Dutch asch, the Swedish aska, the Danish & Norwegian aske, the Old Norse & Old High German aska (from which German gained German Asche) and the Gothic azgo (from the unattested Germanic askōn- (though the evolution of the Gothic is murky).  It was akin to the Latin ārēre (to be dry) (from which English ultimately gained arid) and āra (altar), the Oscan aasaí (on the altar), the Tocharian ās- (dry out; to get dry), the Sanskrit ā́sa- (ashes) and the Hittite hassi (on the hearth), from the primitive Indo-European root as- (to burn, glow).  The Spanish and Portuguese ascua (red-hot coal) are Germanic loan-words.  Ash is a noun & verb, ashiness is a noun, ashed is a verb, ashing is a noun & verb, ashen is an adjective & verb and ashless is an adjective; the noun plural is ashes.  The UK dialectal plural axen was from the Middle English axen & axnen, from the Old English axan & asċan (ashes) and was the plural of the Old English axe or æsċe (ash).  Some dictionaries do list it as rare but for (non-historic) purposes it’s archaic.

The various trees gained the common name ash from the Old English æsc, which was related to the primitive Indo-European word for the tree, while the generic name originated in Latin from a primitive Indo-European word for birch.  Both words were also used to mean “spear” & “shaft” in their respective languages because the straight, tough and durable timber was ideal for such purposes.  From the Old High German asc was derived the German Esche, with an altered vowel from the adjectival derivative eschen (which in Middle High German was eschîn.  It was akin to the Latin ornus (wild mountain ash), the Welsh onnen, the Ancient Greek ὀξύα (oxúa) (beech), the Old Armenian հացի (hacʿi), the Russian yáseń, the Polish jesion, the Czech jasan, the Lithuanian úosis, the Armenian hatsi and the Albanian ah (beech), all ultimately from the primitive Indo-European ōs (ash (tree)).  Although the close-grained timber of the ash is tough, it also has outstanding elasticity which allows it to be formed into shapes so was the preferred wood for spear-shafts and later came to be favored by coach-builders, many of the early automobiles also constructed with ash frames.

Forms have been coined as needed (as a portmanteau or with or without the hyphen) including ash-gourd, ash-pan, ashtray, ashcan, ash-pit fly-ash, ash-borer, pearl-ash, pot-ash & soda ash.  Potash (a class of potassium minerals of similar applicability to potassium carbonate and widely used in the production of fertilizers) is one of the most extensively mined minerals in the world.  One inventive use was noted in 1945 when the US military designated their internment camp for suspected Nazi war criminals as “Ashcan”; impressed, the British dubbed their holding facility “Dustbin”.  The ash-bin (receptacle for ashes from a fire and other refuse) seems not to have been recorded until 1847 although such devices would have been in use for centuries.  Similarly, the word ash-tray (reusable receptacle for the the ashes of the tobacco of smokers) first appears only in 1851 although they were doubtlessly among the first companion products after tobacco was introduced to the Western world after the early European exploration of the Americas in the late fifteenth century.  The ash-heap (stack or pile of ashes or other refuse) dates from the 1640s and seems to have been invented by foundry workers, who presumably produced more ash than most, at a time when their processes were mostly wood-fired.  The ash-pit (repository for ashes, especially in the lower part of a furnace) was first recorded in 1797 and reflected the increasing size of furnaces technological progress made possible; it was the “big brother” to the earlier ash-hole, in use since the 1640s, which continued to be used to describe the architecture of smaller installations.  It’s not known if regional variations in pronunciation meant “ash-hole” sometimes cause problems.

Lindsay Lohan imagined as an ash-blonde.

The phrase “ashes to ashes” is from the Church of England’s (Anglican) burial ritual, mentioned first in the Book of Common Prayer (1549) as part of the service's committal: “Forasmuch as it hath pleased Almighty God of his great mercy to take unto himself the soul of our dear brother [or sister] here departed, we therefore commit his body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.”  It’s an echo of biblical passage from Genesis 3:19: “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”  Over time, “ashes to ashes” transcended its religious origin and has come to be used to allude to the cyclical nature of life and the inevitability of death.  Long pre-dating Christianity, ashes, as a reminder of finality, had been an ancient symbol of grief or repentance, their presence a part of pagan rituals and the early Church picked this up, the tradition beginning when Pope Gregory I (circa 540–604; usually styled Saint Gregory the Great, pope 590-604) sprinkled ashes on the heads of penitents on the first day of Lent although it wasn’t formalized in the ecclesiastical calendar until the fourteenth century, “ashes” having come to mean “the mortal remains of a person” by at least the late thirteenth century and alluded to the ancient custom of cremation.  The use to refer to the finely pulverized lava ejected from volcanoes dates from the 1660s.

Craftspersons (and some these days are other than male) in the Morgan factory at Malvern Link, Worcestershire in the UK, fashioning & fabricating ash frames (left) and 1973 Morgan +8 (right).

With only detail changes, the appearance of the roadsters (and the underlying ash frame, the patterns for which haven’t changed since 1937) in 2023 has little changed since the 1950s and the ancestry of the machines from the 1930s is obvious, the similarities out-numbering the differences.  It’s a persistent myth that under the skin, the Morgan’s platform is made entirely of wood but the truth is the chassis has always been rendered in steel & aluminum onto which is mounted the ash frame, to which the aluminum external panels are attached.  Each roadster takes three weeks to complete.

The “Ashes obituary”, 1882.

The Ashes is the (usually biannual) test cricket series conducted between Australia and England (who toured as the MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) until 1970).  The term “The Ashes” dates from a satirical obituary published in a UK newspaper in 1882, the day after Australia recorded its first test victory on English soil.  The “obituary” noted the death of English cricket and that “the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia”.  The idea caught on and as a prelude to the MCC’s next tour of Australia in 1882–1883, the press frequently mentioned the importance of regaining “those ashes”.  This the MCC’s captain vowed to do and after taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series the job was done and some ladies presented him with a small urn (of unknown provenance although it may have been used for scent) said to contain the ashes of a wooden bail, humorously referred to as “the ashes of Australian cricket”.  Although it took some years before the contest between the teams was institutionalized as “the Ashes” since the 1920s that’s how they’ve been known.

Former England captain Mike Brearley (b 1942) with the Ashes urn, 1977.

The actual “ashes”, the original urn which has rarely left the MCC Museum at Lord's Cricket Ground in London since being presented to the club in 1927, is tiny, just over four inches (105 mm) high which is remarkable for a trophy which is of such significance to both nations.  It’s something like the sense of English understatement expressed when one compares No 10 Downing Street to something like the Élysée Palace which isn’t a wholly fair juxtaposition but they are, in a sense, comparable national symbols.  Certainly, the modest Ashes urn (originally a mass-produced, terracotta item little different from the thousands sold at the time in seaside souvenir shops) has about it noting of the grandeur of something like the America’s Cup (known as the Auld Mug; 1.1m (43 inches) high and weighing in at a hefty 14 kg odd (30+ lb) or any number of trophies in sports like rugby, football, tennis et al.  As a consolation for the original remaining locked up the MCC, in recent series, larger trophies with designs which acknowledge the little urn are now awarded to the victorious team.

Sir Lewis Hamilton contemplating a "plastic" trophy, Silverstone, 2014.

So trophies don’t have to be imposingly large or obviously expensive to be sought after as long as they’re vested with an appropriate history.  However, there can be some expectation of bling for those won by those contesting one-off events of some significance and Formula One driver Sir Lewis Hamilton (b 1985), prompted apparently by being awarded a “plastic” trophy after winning the 2014 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, later suggested it looked like it might be worth about £10, rather less than the traditional RAC (Royal Automobile Club) Gold Cup (he was subsequently presented with the cup at a press conference).  Warming to the topic though, Sir Lewis said he’d noted an obvious decline in the quality of the trophies awarded to Grand Prix winners and that he’d brought the matter to the attention of the then head of the F1 Bernie Ecclestone (b 1930).  It’s estimated the Ashes urn in 1882 would have been purchased for less than whatever was the equivalent then of £10 in 2014 so history and aura can be worth more than bling.

Lindsay Lohan with some trophies.  Sir Lewis might reflect things could have been worse.

Miosótis

Miosótis (pronounced mahy-uh-soh-tis)

Any plant belonging to the boraginaceous (of the borage family) genus Myosotis, having basal leaves and pink or white flowers; known generally as the forget-me-not.

1700–1710: From the New Latin & Latin myosōtis from the Ancient Greek μυοσωτίς (myosōtís or muosōtis) (mouse's ear (in the context of botany)), the construct being myós (genitive of mŷs or muos (mouse)) + -ōt- (stem of oûs (ear)) + -is (the noun suffix).  The mouse-ear (Myosotis Arvensis (type species Myosotis scorpioides)) is also called mouse-lug and the original Hellenic name was based on the idea of the foliage have some resemblance to the rodent's ears.  In Portuguese, the plant is also known as the não-te-esqueças-de-mim (literally "do not forget about me" and thus akin to "forget me not") & orelha-de-rato (mouse ear).  Miosótis is a noun; the noun plural is miosótis.  The alternative spelling myosótis is obsolete.

The miosótis is a perennial flowering plant, the flowers having five sepals and petals, typically flat and less than a half-inch (1.25 mm) in diameter, the color range including pink, white, yellow & blue with yellow centres, sprouting in a scorpioid cluster.  Flowering happens almost in spring, coinciding with the melting of snow in alpine regions.  The genus was originally described by Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician Carl Linnaeus (1707–1778), famous for having systematized binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming organisms and thus known as the "father of modern taxonomy".  The colloquial names in the northern hemisphere are "forget-me-not" and (less commonly "scorpion grass" (based on the spiraled clustering of the flowers) and Myosotis alpestris is the official flower of both Alaska and Dalsland, Sweden.  In other places, the common names vary and because of the vivid colors they are popular among amateur horticulturists, having spread to many of the Earth’s temperate regions where, outside of curated artificial environments, they prefer moist locations such as wetlands and riverbanks.

The “mouse’s ear” explained by Karen Smith (Amanda Seyfried (b 1985)) in Mean Girls (2004).  Note the resemblance of the "mouse ears" to the petals of the miosótis flower