Etymology Online

       "Etymonline.com" is a website aimed at aggregating and assimilating online the roots of words from a number of etymological sources.

       Douglas Harper of Pennsylvania is the laborer of love here.  A college graduate in history and English, he is combining the fields by doing a "history of English"...word by word.

       As befits someone who chose this excellent preoccupation, Douglas writes well.  Here's a sample from his bio:


       In 1960, when I was born, my parents lived in a place in Pennsylvania called Exton, a village given that name, for all anyone can remember, because it was just a crossroads "X" on the map.  [T]heir house sat across the Swedesford Road from what is now the sprawling mothership of Exton Hall, but was, in 1960, a bog.


       You may check out Doug's website with a click.