Keep me posted. Clue me in. Keep me in the loop.
Those three phrases are commonly used when asking others for updates on particular subjects or matters. A loyal reader of this column recently asked me if I knew where the phrases originated. I told her I didn’t know, but I would find out… and keep her posted.
The word “post” originates from the Latin word “postis,” which refers to a doorpost. Some say it comes from the use of doormen who guarded building entrances. Others claim the phrase “keep me posted” originates directly from military sources, as soldiers were “posted” to specific landmarks, bases and checkpoints. In the Old French language, which was spoken from the eighth to the 14th centuries, the word “post” meant a “pillar” or a “beam.” Prior to the Internet, people would physically “post” announcements to doors and boards to share information. Even in recent decades, bands would “post” their concert flyers on bulletin boards or doors and even staple them to utility poles. As such, to “post” something means to publish or announce it to others.
To clue one in means to offer new information — or to correct misinformation — but why the word “clue”? The famed myth of the Minotaur shares how the Minoan princess, Ariadne, helped the Greek hero, Theseus, slay the monster. She did so by giving a ball of thread to Theseus so, after killing the Minotaur, he could retrace his path from inside the labyrinth by following the thread. The word “clue,” while German in origin, is derived from “clew” — which referred to a “ball of thread or yarn.” By the 1600s, “clue” was used to mean “something that points the way.” Over time, the relation to the labyrinth faded, and “clue” began to mean “a sign or some information that helps you to find the answer to a problem.”
The word “loop” in the phrase “keep me in the loop” is short for a command-and-control feedback loop. This military term is about the passing of orders from officers to soldiers, and status reports from soldiers back to officers. The more quickly the messages would go around the feedback loop, the more effective the overall command was. This is why the telegraph and radio revolutionized warfare, as they shortened the time around the loop. Think about how much time it took a messenger on horseback to deliver a message. As such, to be in the loop is to know what is going on by receiving messages. The opposite, to be out of the loop, is to be clueless because the information has bypassed you.
Now you are posted, clued in and in the loop.
Have a terrific Tuesday, and thanks for reading.
Shane Goodman
President and Publisher
Big Green Umbrella Media
shane@dmcityview.com
515-953-4822, ext. 305
www.thedailyumbrella.com |
