A waterfall is a rare and majestic natural phenomenon that creates an tremendous yet calming noise while also conjuring up feelings of mystery and thrill. Our legends abound with hidden passages concealed within, and the mist they create often catches the sun and casts a rainbow. Waterfalls truly encapsulate the magic of life on earth…
We call them that because the water… falls…
Naming things is hard, but when you’re giving a name to a thing that is elemental, powerful, and all-important, a very simple name is not a bad idea.
This reminds me of how absurd the naming of walkie-talkie is. You can talkie while you walkie.
As a non native English speaker it took me way too long to actually understand / question the name itself as we use it in German too and I therefore learned the word before I could speak English.
English is a deeply flawed but intensely playful language. It’s like the weird kid at the playground who’s clearly a mess, but they’re always down for whatever.
I took a year in German. It’s much prettier than its reputation in pop culture makes it. One of my favourite words is sehnsucht, and I keep trying to get anglophones to steal it.
