Prompt Cast
The Fascinating History and Modern Day Love of Palindromes
TLDR Palindromes, words or phrases that read the same forwards and backwards, have a long history dating back to ancient Rome. From the first Latin palindrome in 70 CE to modern day Palindrome Championships, the love for palindromes has endured and continues to captivate enthusiasts.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
Palindromes are words, phrases, or poems that can be read the same forwards and backwards, and the word "palindrome" comes from the Greek words for "back" and "running."
02:05
The first palindrome comes from 70 CE in Latin and means "the sower arepo holds the wheel with effort or the sower arepo leads with his hand, the plow."
04:21
The love of palindromes has survived beyond ancient Rome, and we will pick up with the modern day after a short break.
06:34
The first mention of palindromes in English is in Camden's Remains by John Filipot from 1636, and the first written English palindrome in an English dictionary is "lewd did I live and evil did I dwell," although it has some flaws.
09:09
The podcast discusses a palindrome poem that swings on a hinge and mentions a documentary called The Palindromists, which covers the Palindrome Championships where enthusiasts have 90 minutes to write original palindromes and the audience votes.
11:11
The podcast discusses various palindromes, including ones written by Danica, Weird Al, and contestants in the Palindrome Championships, and mentions a computer scientist who broke the record for the longest palindrome sentence using a computer program.
13:37
The hosts discuss some funny palindromes, including "Stella won no wallets at the Big Wallet competition" and "clearly a citrus street vendor, no lemon, no melon."
Categories:
Society & Culture
