One of the books we recently recommended gives the history of words such as “sandwich” and “silhouette” whose eponymous originators have often been forgotten. Eponymous is an adjective that designates someone whose name has been given to something else (from the Greek eponymos, “given-upon name”). For example, the restaurants Guy Savoy in Paris, Joel Robuchon in Las Vegas, and Tetsuya’s in Sydney are all named after their founding eponymous chefs; the Julian calendar is named for the eponymous Roman leader who codified it (Julius Caesar); and the Elizabethan Era in British history is so called after the eponymous queen, Elizabeth I (even though Elizabeth II is currently on the throne). Many things have been named after their inventors (the Geiger counter, Morse code, the Venn diagram) but are so common and familiar now that although they’re still capitalized, we rarely associated the names with their eponymous inventors.

Some English adjectives come from eponymous figures, but are now not even capitalized. It’s interesting to trace the origins of these words, and remember the people, real and fictitious, who gave rise to the vocabulary we use today. Here are some examples:

quixotic (kwik-ZAH-tik)
Named after Cervantes’ gallant but foolish would-be knight, Don Quixote, this adjective describes actions or wishes that are extremely idealistic and romantic but not very practical.
Example: His quixotic efforts to clean up the city by choosing one neighborhood each week and walking around with a sign reading “Don’t Litter!” didn’t immediately solve the litter problem, but it did inspire local organizations to sponsor trash bins outside their buildings.

herculean (HER-kyu-LEE-uhn)
From the Greek hero Hercules, who performed seemingly impossible feats of strength and power that were not possible for mere mortals, we get this word meaning “extremely difficult, requiring extraordinary force.” It’s often used metaphorically to add humorous emphasis.
Example: I neglected to hire a gardener while I was traveling in Japan, and although the house-sitter had kept everything inside tidy, I was faced with the herculean task of clearing out the weeds when I returned at the end of the summer.

narcissistic (NAR-sih-SIS-tik)
The handsome young Narcissus was so enamored of his own beauty, according to Greek mythology, that he starved to death sitting by a pond, gazing at his own reflection night and day.
Example: The city council refused the millionaire’s offer to build a new city park because of his narcissistic demand to have statues of himself placed at every entrance.

draconian (drah-KOH-nee-uhn)
In ancient Greece, the lawgiver Draco was known for his harsh sentences and cruel punishments; the word now has the general meaning of “rigid, severe, oppressive, and strict.”
Example: Singapore’s laws may seem draconian, punishing people with jail time for littering or chewing gum, but they certainly keep the streets clean.

The word English is itself derived from the eponymous Germanic tribe, the Angles, who moved into what is now Britain in the first century AD.