Nigel

Nigel /ˈnaɪdʒəl/ is an English masculine given name. The name is derived from the Latin Nigellus. This Latin word would seem to derive from the Latin niger, meaning "black"; however this is thought to be an example of an incorrect etymology created by French-speaking clerics, who knew Latin as well, to translate the Norman first name Neel in the Latin written documents. Indeed, the Latin word nigellus gave birth to Old French neel (modern nielle), meaning “niello, black enamel” and it explains the confusion, because the clerics believed it was the same etymology as the first name Neel, spelled the same way.

In fact, the Old Norman first name Neel (modern surname Néel) derives itself from the Norse Njáll. The Norse Njáll, in turn, is derived from the Gaelic Niall. The English Nigel is commonly found in records dating from the Middle Ages, however it was not used much before being revived by 19th-century antiquarians. For instance, Sir Walter Scott published The Fortunes of Nigel in 1822, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle published Sir Nigel in 1905–06. Nigel was a common name for boys born in England and Wales from the 1950s to the 1970s (see below).

Nigel (dog)

Nigel is a male Golden Retriever dog belonging to Monty Don, a British television gardening presenter. He is known for his appearances on the BBC Two gardening programme, Gardeners' World on which he is seen following the presenter around his garden and catching and dropping his tennis ball. Apart from his television appearances, Nigel has his own Twitter account.

Injury in 2012

Nigel is popular with viewers who were concerned when he disappeared from the programme in September 2012. The reason was that he had injured himself after twisting sideways when jumping to catch his tennis ball which exploded an intervertebral disc in his spine. He was treated with steroids by a local veterinary surgeon and was then taken to Noel Fitzpatrick, a vet specialising in extreme cases who treated him with hydrotherapy, drugs and physiotherapy. He recovered and resumed his television appearances.

Don's views on dogs

Don said that he chose his dog Nigel because the domestic dog signifies the good and bad in human relationships with nature.

Nigel de Longchamps

Nigel de Longchamps, also known as Nigel Wireker, (fl. c. 1190, died c. 1200), was an English satirist and poet of the late twelfth century, writing in Latin. He is known to have been a monk of Christ Church, Canterbury, from 1186 to 1193, and perhaps earlier (he claims to have met Thomas Becket, killed in 1170).

Works

Speculum stultorum

He is the author of the Speculum stultorum (A Mirror of Fools), a satire in Latin elegiac verse on the clergy and society in general. The hero is Burnellus, or Brunellus, a foolish ass, who goes in search of a means of lengthening his tail. Brunellus first visits Salernum to obtain drugs for this purpose. However, he loses these when attacked by a Cistercian monk with dogs. He then goes to Paris to study, but makes no progress there, being unable to remember the city's name after eight years of study. He then decides to join a religious order, but instead founds a new one by taking the easiest parts from the rules of other orders. Finally, his master recaptures him.

Dirt

Dirt is unclean matter, especially when in contact with a person's clothes, skin or possessions when they are said to become dirty. Common types of dirt include:

Exhibitions and studies

A season of artworks and exhibits on the theme of dirt was sponsored by the Wellcome Trust in 2011. The centrepiece was an exhibition at the Wellcome Collection showing pictures and histories of notable dirt such as the great dust heaps at Euston and King's Cross in the 19th century and the Fresh Kills landfill which was once the world's largest.

Foci

Computer keyboards are especially dirty as, on average, they contain 70 times more microbes than a lavatory seat.

Cleaning

When things are dirty they are usually cleaned with solutions like hard surface cleaner and other chemicals; much domestic activity is for this purpose — washing, sweeping and so forth.

Dirt!

Dirt! is the sixth album by the Canadian comedy music group The Arrogant Worms, released in 1999.

Track listing

All tracks by The Arrogant Worms

Personnel

References

Dirt (Kids in Glass Houses album)

Dirt is the second studio album from Welsh rock band Kids in Glass Houses, released on 29 March 2010 through Roadrunner Records. The album was recorded during mid-2009 at Sonic Boom Ranch Studios in Texas with Jason Perry and at Long Wave Studios in Wales with Smart Casual producer Romesh Dodangoda. The lead single from the album was "Young Blood (Let It Out)" and was released on 4 October 2009. The second single from the album is "Matters At All" and was released on 31 January 2010.

The track "Hunt The Haunted" was released as a free download on 8 January 2010. The entire album was available to stream on their MySpace page for a limited time.

The album reached #15 on the UK midweek chart 2 days after its release and officially charted in its first week at #27 selling 8,400.

Track listing

Reception

The reception for this album has been mixed to positive This Is Fake DIY gave a positive review stating "Will it equal ‘Smart Casual's success in the charts? No: it will eclipse it. Believe us when we say that this lot have a potential top 10 smash on their hands, and there is a real possibility of the new album blowing a hole in the wall if enough people catch on."