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43 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, January 27, 2005 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Opportunities Moving to Southern Oregon? MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend December 25, 2004 Since you asked Long ago it was bird dung atop a stick I looked up the word "mistletoe," and the dictionary said it comes from the Old English "mistel," meaning "Mistletoe," and the Germanic "tan," meaning "twig." But where does "mistel" come from, and did it always mean "mistletoe"? And what about the Druids? — Bob G., Central Point The strange word dates back more than 1,000 years, Bob. The Druids were long gone by then, and the Britons had long since been conquered by invading Angles and Saxons from Germany, who of course brought their native tongues. The West Saxon dialect over several centuries became a sort of standard language we know as Old English. Still with us? Good, because while tan was indeed "twig," mistel was the Anglo-Saxon word for "dung." Apparently, people noticed that the partial parasite mistletoe often sprang from branches marked with bird droppings. Aha, but aren’t lots of branches? Sure. But scientists would eventually discover that the mistletoe was in fact often spread by the droppings of birds who had eaten the seeds. So the name, mistletoe — "dung twig," or "bird droppings on a stick" — turned out to be prophetic. Send questions to "Since You Asked," Mail Tribune Newsroom, P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501; by fax to 541-776-4376; or by e-mail to [email protected] . We’re sorry, but the volume of questions received prevents us from answering all of them. Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Student Loan Consolidation Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers