Q&A Forum - March 2019

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The word “Governess” comes from the word “Govern” which means “to steer or pilot a ship”. In 1400 the word Governess came into being and it meant “a female ruler or a woman who rules”. It was not until 1712 that Governess came to mean "a female teacher in a private home".

How about the word “Tomboy”? It originally meant "bold or immodest woman". Later it came to mean "girl who acts like a spirited boy".

Some words do evolve from negative connotation to positive. The word “Bitch” was originally "female of the dog". But later became "bad-tempered female". The slang “bitchen” means "good". And later Bitch became “Woman in-charge”. “Bitch-Goddess女神 — a woman treated as divine” is a term that was coined in 1906 by Psychologist William James.

The word “Lesbian” is derived from that name of the female poet, Sappho, who was born 615 B.C. on the Aegean island of Lesbos. Sappho was the first female poet to write about her love for women.

“Dyke” is an interesting word. There have been many debates about its origin or meaning but one that I found to be most interesting is that it is possibly derived from Boudicca (Bou-dyke-ah), a Celtic Queen who organized a revolt against the Roman Empire in 67 A.D. This empowered woman was seen as a threat to the power structure. Later, the connotation of “dyke” changed to refer to lesbians. A woman who did not desire a man sexually was considered to be an empowered woman because her sexuality freed her from male dominance.