Ear, 'Ear!

I wonder if any of you are familiar with the word tragus. I came across it when my daughter, Freya, had her ears pierced. While Freya (thank goodness!) was content to have her earlobes pierced, the price sheet referred to the option of tragus-piercing.

I looked this up when I got home because I didn't dare ask in the shop – it could have referred to something unspeakable, after all! I learned that the tragus is the little bump that partially covers the ear hole through which sound enters your head on its way to the eardrum.

Then I discovered the lovely background to this word and had to share it with you. The first person known to have named this small body part was a Greek physician, Rufus of Ephesus, about 2000 years ago. And the name he chose shows the ancient Greeks had a sense of humour. Because tragus was the Greek word for a billy-goat. If you've seen men with little tufts of hair growing out of their ears you'll appreciate the connection. The Greeks were likening this tuft of hair to the billy-goat's beard!

I hope this amuses you as much as it did me.