I am leaving for Crete today. A week of enjoying the sun, the culture and the great Greek food. Stay tuned!
Something has been on my mind though: is the word “cretin” related in any way to the inhabitants of Crete, the Cretans?
After some web research, this is what I have found about the word “cretin”:
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in the original sense: a Christian
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Webster 1913: condition of endemic or inherited idiocy, accompanied by physical degeneracy and deformity (usually with goiter), frequent in certain mountain valleys, esp. of the Alps
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Derived from the inhabitants of Crete, where apparently indoor plumbing was an early innovation in Roman times, but unfortunately the material chosen to make the pipes was lead, resulting in an increase in the prevalence of congenital idiocy to such an extent that “inhabitant of Crete” became synonymous with “Idiot”, and if some speculation is to be believed, contributed to The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
Urban legend?
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