In Old English, the word was mostly taken to mean “rice” meant “mighty”, “wealthy” and “of high rank”. The closest semblance of it still exists in the German “Reich”. The root had its Latin origins in “rex/ reg”, and in Sanskrit as “raj”, all of which were associated with the concept of “kingship”, in fact a “rajah” in Hindi (a language derived from Sanskrit) still means “king”. From those roots we get words like regime ((time) of king), reign, regal, regiment (rule or guide, thus a routine) and region.
The other meaning that came to be of “rex” and “reg” was that of “to move in a straight line” (thus ruler can be both, a ruler, and a ruler). It get mutated to “rec-“ and gives us a set of words which signify a “straight line”. Bridging “rec-“, and “reg-” we have words like “regimen”, which means a guiding set of rules, and “regular” and “regulate” which again signify a rule or pattern. A shape having all right angles is a rectangle. When you set something straight you rectify it. The extent of being straight is its rectitude, and movement in straight line is called rectilinear.
When you derive a name from these set of roots you get Richard, and this finally gives me an opportunity to make a dick joke. How “rich and straight” eventually came to mean dick or jerk, is as stupid and fitting a story as you’d expect of etymology.
Somebody shortened Richard to Rich, and had a bad enough handwriting for somebody else to read it as Dick. Seriously. You either absolutely love, or absolutely despise etymology now. In either case, my job is done.
Picture: Visual representation of how Richard became a mnemonic for Rainbow, in "Richard of York Gave Battle In Vain". Happy Pride!
The other meaning that came to be of “rex” and “reg” was that of “to move in a straight line” (thus ruler can be both, a ruler, and a ruler). It get mutated to “rec-“ and gives us a set of words which signify a “straight line”. Bridging “rec-“, and “reg-” we have words like “regimen”, which means a guiding set of rules, and “regular” and “regulate” which again signify a rule or pattern. A shape having all right angles is a rectangle. When you set something straight you rectify it. The extent of being straight is its rectitude, and movement in straight line is called rectilinear.
Somebody shortened Richard to Rich, and had a bad enough handwriting for somebody else to read it as Dick. Seriously. You either absolutely love, or absolutely despise etymology now. In either case, my job is done.
Picture: Visual representation of how Richard became a mnemonic for Rainbow, in "Richard of York Gave Battle In Vain". Happy Pride!
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