Which fly came first?

Comments

• Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe ⁨9⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

  Fly, as in the insect, is from proto-Germanic, so very old.

  Fly - Etymology, Origin & Meaning www.etymonline.com/word/fly

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• Lumidaub@feddit.org ⁨11⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

  I don’t know but you’re looking for the etymology of the noun fly.

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• DagwoodIII@piefed.social ⁨11⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

  The term “fly” in the context of pants originates from the Old English word “flowan,” meaning to flow. It refers to the piece of fabric that covers the zipper, not the zipper itself. The term gained popularity in the 19th century when tailors began using it to describe a flap of cloth attached at one end to cover an opening in a garment. This usage was particularly noted for its association with the right side of men’s trousers, distinguishing it from women’s garments, which may have different openings

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  • dual_sport_dork@lemmy.world ⁨10⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

    I’ll bet you this also has something to do with the terminology for the rain fly on a tent, most of which have the same kind of flap covering the zippers and/or openings.

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• Mostly_Gristle@lemmy.world ⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

  Almost certainly fly as in birds came first. Trousers with a fly are a pretty recent fashion development, like within the last 200 years or so, whereas people have been watching birds since before the invention of language.

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  • Squirrelsdrivemenuts@lemmy.world ⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

    I agree. I also imagine fly for insects comes from abbreviating “flying bug” or something like that, so also came after the verb to fly.

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• TheMetaleek@sh.itjust.works ⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

  Insects fly the same as birds and aeroplanes do, they create air flow around a rounded wing edge, wich causes the air upward of the wing to flow faster than the air under, thus creating a lifting force. And to answer origins, to our knowledge insects were by far the first living flying things, around 300 million years ago with dragonfly relatives

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  • sbeak@sopuli.xyz ⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

    I meant fly as in the insect you would call a fly (the name, not the act of flying itself). Very cool that insects were the first flying thing though!

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    • TheMetaleek@sh.itjust.works ⁨11⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

      Yeah I understood after, hence my very fast edit to add the last sentence about flies existing only from around 245 my

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• Isa@feddit.org ⁨12⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago

  Fly ai inFly You Fools Lord Of The Rings GIF by Maudit

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