When we picture illnesses that have shaped human history, vivid scenes pop up: a forlorn heroine spitting blood into a crisp white handkerchief, pirate crews with yellowed teeth battling scurvy, rows of corpses being carted away while kids chant a solemn “Ring Around the Rosie,” and elderly gentlemen draped in white sheets, leeches dangling from their limbs. And the words that echo alongside these images? “The plague,” “Consumption,” “Dropsy.” But what exactly were those ailments, and how have their names morphed over time?
10 Diseases Used Consumption Becomes Tuberculosis
In 2016 the United States recorded its lowest ever tally of tuberculosis cases, yet the disease remains a top‑ten killer on the global stage, with more than 95 % of infections occurring in low‑income nations. While most of us picture TB as a violent, blood‑spitting cough, the antiquated label “consumption” actually described the dramatic, wasting weight loss that seemed to devour sufferers from within.
That culinary‑sounding term isn’t a coincidence. The Latin word tuber, meaning “lump” or “swelling,” gave rise to both the name of the humble potato and the disease’s modern moniker. TB creates hard, little swellings in the lungs, echoing the original meaning. Though the infection dates back millennia, the scientific designation “tuberculosis” didn’t appear until the mid‑19th century, around 1860.
9 Black Death Becomes Bubonic Plague
The Black Death still haunts the collective imagination, with death toll estimates soaring to 200 million in the 14th century. Terrifying chronicles describe bodies stacked like lasagna layers, each thin slice of earth separating the dead. Back then, people knew nothing about the bacteria hitching rides on black rats and their fleas, the true culprits behind the catastrophe.
Today we refer to the illness as bubonic plague, a name derived from the swollen lymph nodes—called “buboes”—that erupt in the groin, armpit, or neck. Even though the disease sounds medieval, the World Health Organization recorded only 320 cases worldwide in 2015, resulting in 77 deaths.
8 Hysteria Becomes Any Number Of Things
Nowadays, calling something “hysterical” usually means “hilariously funny,” but its original sense was “uncontrollably emotional.” The word traces back to the Latin hystera, literally “womb,” the same root that appears in “hysterectomy.” It’s a linguistic twist: an organ’s name birthing a term for extreme emotional turmoil.
For centuries, hysteria was pigeonholed as a female malady, blamed on women’s supposed inferiority. Ancient Egyptian physicians, medieval scholars, and even Hippocrates himself claimed the uterus floated freely inside the body, causing chaos wherever it roamed. At other times, the condition was blamed on witchcraft or demonic possession. Ironically, a popular 19th‑century “cure”—the vibrator—originated from the belief that induced orgasms could alleviate hysteria.
7 Falling Sickness Becomes Epilepsy
Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar” famously mentions “the falling sickness,” a relatively gentle euphemism for the seizure disorder we now call epilepsy. Historically, the condition was linked to dark forces—insanity, witchcraft, even the wrath of angry deities—earning it nicknames like “the sacred disease” or “the divine affliction.”
Yet, as early as 400 BC, Greek physicians authored “On the Sacred Disease,” arguing that epilepsy stemmed from natural causes. The modern name derives from the Greek verb epilambanem, meaning “to seize”—a nod to the sudden, involuntary fits caused by electrical storms in the brain.
6 The Clap Becomes Gonorrhea
Brace yourself: the gruesome legend behind “the clap” claims the nickname arose from a brutal treatment that involved “clapping” the penis between hard surfaces to force out discharge. While that story persists, other theories suggest the term stems from the French “clapier” (a brothel) or the Old English “clappan,” meaning “to throb.”
By contrast, the scientific label “gonorrhea” is far less dramatic. It combines the Greek root “gono-” (relating to reproduction) with “-rrhea” (flow or discharge). Though the infection is treatable, the rise of antibiotic‑resistant strains now poses a serious public‑health challenge.
5 Dropsy Becomes Edema
The etymology of “dropsy” is murky, but scholars trace it to Middle English “dropesie,” itself rooted in the Greek hydrops. Though the word might conjure images of clumsiness, its true meaning centers on the “hydro” component—fluid. Historically, “dropsy” described swelling caused by excess bodily fluid, a condition we now label “edema.”
Edema can manifest in countless ways, from a mosquito bite’s puffiness to life‑threatening swelling linked to heart failure or head trauma. Treatment hinges on the underlying cause, making a precise diagnosis essential.
4 Various Becomes Syphilis
Syphilis has worn many monikers. Nations often blamed neighboring peoples: the Russians dubbed it “the Polish disease,” the Poles called it “the German disease,” and the Portuguese labeled it “the Spanish disease.” In the infamous Tuskegee Study, U.S. researchers deceived 600 African‑American men into believing they were receiving treatment for “bad blood,” when in fact they received none.
The name “syphilis” itself emerged from a 1530 epic poem about a shepherd cursed by an angry god. Its precise origin remains uncertain. Clinically, syphilis begins with painless sores, can progress to neurosyphilis or ocular involvement, and may cause severe headaches, paralysis, dementia, or blindness if untreated. Fortunately, modern antibiotics and condom use can prevent and cure the infection.
3 GRID Becomes HIV/AIDS
When the epidemic first surfaced in 1982, The New York Times ran a story titled “New Homosexual Disorder Worries Health Officials,” coining the phrase “gay‑related immunodeficiency” or GRID. The article noted that, while gay men were disproportionately affected, heterosexual individuals and intravenous drug users also contracted the illness.
GRID proved fleeting; the CDC soon adopted the more accurate term “AIDS” for the disease’s most advanced stage. In 1986, the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses formalized the name “Human Immunodeficiency Virus” (HIV), distinguishing the virus from the syndrome it can cause.
2 Shell Shock Becomes PTSD
Post‑traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a condition that can arise after exposure to life‑threatening events, serious injury, sexual violence, or the mere threat of such horrors. The DSM‑5 notes that indirect exposure—such as learning a loved one has suffered trauma—can also trigger the disorder. Symptoms include intrusive flashbacks, avoidance, negative mood, hypervigilance, and occasionally self‑destructive behavior.
Originally dubbed “shell shock” in the early 20th century, the term emphasized physical signs—tremors, fatigue, perceptual distortions—attributed to the concussion from exploding artillery. Over time, clinicians realized that soldiers who never encountered a blast could exhibit identical symptoms, shifting the focus from physical injury to the psychological impact of war.
1 Apoplexy Becomes Stroke
More than two millennia ago, Hippocrates coined the term “apoplexy” to describe a sudden, violent collapse—what we now recognize as a stroke. The Greek root translates to “struck down by violence,” a vivid depiction of the abrupt loss of brain function.
Modern medicine prefers “stroke,” though older synonyms like “cerebrovascular accident” linger in some texts. Even “brain attack” has gained traction, emphasizing urgency akin to a heart attack. A stroke occurs when blood flow to a brain region is blocked, causing neuronal death; swift intervention can dramatically improve outcomes.
Hannah lives in Seattle with her husband and dogs. She enjoys researching and writing.