Eponyms by Heather Backman

Atlas

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 00:30:32 UTC

Atlas was the god of astronomy and navigation in a group of ancient Greek gods called the Titans. When the Titans lost a battle against the Olympian gods for control of the heavens, Zeus, the Olympian leader, punished Atlas. Atlas was forced to hold the heavens on his shoulders. This mythological figure was often featured on the cover of early map collections. These books eventually became known as atlases. Atlas was generally depicted (wrongly) holding the world rather than the heavens on his shoulders.

Boycott

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:04:52 UTC

Charles C. Boycott (1832-1897) was a land agent who refused to reduce the cost of rent in Ireland in the late 1800s. Farmers who were his tenants held a campaign against Boycott. They refused to provide labor for him or sell to him. He eventually had to move away.

Caesar Salad

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:06:07 UTC

Caesar Cardini (1896-1956) was an Italian chef who lived in the USA and Mexico. He is credited with inventing the Caesar salad around 1924 from a number of ingredients that were available in his restaurant.

Cardigan

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:07:55 UTC

The 7th Earl of Cardigan, James Thomas Brudenell (1797-1868), was an officer in the British Army. He - and his men - often wore knitted waistcoats that opened at the front. After he led the successful Charge of the Light Brigade in 1854 against Russian forces in the Crimea, the waistcoats or "cardigans" became highly fashionable in England.

Celsius

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:09:07 UTC

Anders Celsius (1701-1744) was a Swedish professor of astronomy. In 1736, he joined a famous expedition (the Lapland expedition) to confirm that the earth flattened out around the poles. He also developed the idea behind the temperature scale that had two fixed points for boiling and freezing. This Celsius temperature scale was named after him, just as the Fahrenheit scale was named after German physicist Daniel Fahrenheit.

Diesel

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:10:06 UTC

Rudolf Diesel (1854-1913) was the German inventor of the diesel engine. He studied fuel efficiency and invented the diesel engine after realizing that the early gasoline-powered engines and steam-powered engines were not very efficient. Diesel engines and the fuel that they typically use today were named after him.

Fahrenheit

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:11:30 UTC

Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit (1686-1736) was a German glass blower and physicist. He invented the alcohol and mercury thermometers and the temperature scale used with them around 1724. Fahrenheit created his temperature scale by taking two temperature points of reference (freezing water and boiling water) that were 180 degrees apart.

Ferris Wheel

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:14:25 UTC

George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. (1859-1896) was an American bridge builder. He accepted a challenge to plan a monument for the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The organizers wanted something as amazing as the Eiffel Tower, which had been built for the Paris Expo (1889). Ferris's proposal was a large observation wheel. He got his own investors and convinced organizers to let him build the giant wheel. The Chicago Wheel (1893) became the world's first Ferris wheel. It cost 50 cents per ride.

Guppy

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:15:16 UTC

Robert John Lechmere Guppy (1836-1916) was a British naturalist. He discovered the guppy fish in Trinidad in 1866, and it was later named after him.

Guy

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:16:55 UTC

Guy Fawkes (1570-1606) was a British Catholic who, with a group of others, attempted to blow up the Houses of Parliament and assassinate King James of England/Scotland in 1605. The failed attempt is known as the Gunpowder Plot. At the time, Guy was not a popular name. In fact, Guy Fawkes preferred the name "Guido". Guy Fawkes became well-known because of his role in the Gunpowder Plot. He was tortured and killed, and remembered for his attempt. Over time, the British began to use the word "guy" to mean effigy (a model of a person) or a badly-dressed man. Eventually this word made its way to America, where it lost its negative associations and came to mean "fellow" or "man".

Jumbo

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:18:01 UTC

A giant African elephant named Jumbo (1860-1885) was the first of its species to arrive in Europe alive. It lived in the London Zoo for many years and was the largest elephant in captivity. Jumbo was sold to a circus, which caused public outrage. The popularity of the large elephant resulted in the new English word meaning "very large".

Leotard

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:19:08 UTC

Jules Léotard (1838-1870) was a French acrobat who specialized in trapeze. He invented a one-piece, tight-fitting costume to wear for his acts. This unisex dancewear now bears his name.

Morphine

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:20:11 UTC

The son of Somnus, the Roman god of sleep, Morpheus was the god of dreams as reported in Ovid's Latin narrative poem Metamorphosis (8 AD). Morpheus can mimic humans and appear in their dreams. The opiate drug morphine is named after this mythological character.

Nicotine

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:22:19 UTC

Jean Nicot (1530-1600) was a French ambassador to Portugal. He introduced tobacco to France, and claimed it had healing properties. The addictive substance was later named after him.

Pasteurization

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 01:23:28 UTC

Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) was a French chemist who is sometimes referred to as "the father of microbiology". He studied fermentation, and discovered that you could prolong the taste of beer and wine by heating it up and killing off the bacteria. Pasteur discovered the cause of many diseases and stressed the importance of sterilization. He convinced doctors that they needed to sterilize their hands and equipment before surgery.

Braille

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 02:02:31 UTC

Louis Braille (1809-1852) suffered an eye injury as a small child, and went blind. He found it difficult to read using a raised alphabet system that was being used at a French institute for the blind in Paris. At the school he learned about a man who was developing a secret system that allowed soldiers to read messages in the dark. The system was too complex, but it inspired Louis to experiment with his own writing system of raised dots. Louis Braille taught his code to blind students, but it wasn't until a few years after his death that the system became popular around the world.

Jacuzzi

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 02:04:42 UTC

Candido Jacuzzi (1903-1986) was an Italian inventor who moved to the USA. When his young son was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, Jacuzzi invented a pump that could be used in a bathtub for hydrotherapy. He put the pump on the market and Jacuzzi tubs became popular in health centers and spas.

Mentor

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 02:05:34 UTC

In ancient Greek mythology, Mentor was Odysseus's friend. In Homer's epic poem Odyssey, Mentor advises Telemachus (Odysseus's son) on several personal issues.

Panic

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 02:06:40 UTC

Pan was the goat-like god of shepherds and flocks in Greek mythology. He was able to cause sudden, widespread fear with his voice.

Paparazzi

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 02:07:50 UTC

In the 1960s film La Dolce Vita, there is a news photographer named Paparazzo who works for gossip magazines. The Italian word "paparazzo" was chosen for the character's name because it sounds like the buzz of an annoying insect.

Watt

heather_backman — 2024-04-19 02:09:41 UTC

James Watt (1736-1819) was a Scottish engineer and inventor who was interested in improving the efficiency of steam engines. He invented the separate condenser, which condensed steam without cooling the internal walls of the piston and cylinder. He also invented a rotary motion powered steam-engine, which replaced the up and down pumping action with a forward and backward motion. These two improvements to the steam-engine made it more energy efficient. The standard unit of power was named after Watt in honor of his inventions.