Just For Fun

Sometimes, I sit around and ponder the great mysteries of life.

Like the etymology of the word cheese.

"Why do we call cheese 'cheese' when the Italians call it formaggio, the French call it fromage, and so on?  [Further examples if you want them - formatge in Catalan, fourmaj in Breton, furmo in Provençal.]  I mean, 'cheese' sounds nothing like any of those things."

So I did a little reading.

Apparently, the Germanic languages liked the Latin root caseus [which became cheese in English, kaas in Dutch, käse in German], while the Romance languages took their inspiration from another Latin word, formaticum, meaning "molded/formed".

I know.  Fascinating.  Your existence feels so much brighter and more meaningful now.  You're welcome.

But while you're here, and while I'm feeling cheesy, did you know that...

...the first factory for commercial cheese production was opened in Switzerland in 1815?

...cheese contains the amino acid tryptophan, which relieves stress and induces sleep?

...the average American consumes 32.6 lbs of cheese annually?  We rank 15th in the world's consumption of cheese, behind Greece, France, Iceland, Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Sweden, Austria, Czech Republic, Israel, and Norway.

...the average Greek (number 1 in the ranking) consumes an astonishing 68.5 lbs of cheese every year?  That's it, baby!  I'm moving to Greece.  Give me sun and sea and cheese - I'll be a happy girl.

...the U.S produces 26% of the world's cheese?

...Charles de Gaulle once asked, "How can you govern a country that has 246 kinds of cheese?"  A stupid question, frankly.  After all, a country with that many kinds of cheese must have really happy citizens, and of course happy citizens should be much easier to govern than disgruntled ones.

Well, that's enough about cheese for now.  Oh grate, you're thinking.  I know, I know.  That was lame.

I'll hopefully be back again this week with some more serious posts.  But until then - may you live long and may your days all be filled with cheese!