In Italian, there are few words that begin with FL. Instead words begin with FI, such as Firenze. In English this morphs into Florence, because apparently somewhere along the translation line, someone mistook FI for FL. Perhaps the dot was too close. Could have been as simple as that. But at any rate, this is true. Fiore = flower. When you think of the FI words, it’s pretty easy to jump to FL. Another example is fiasco. Let’s see . . . what could that mean? Hmmm. How about flask. Yep. That’s it. But why? Here’s the “logic.”

A fiasco was the name of the bottle that typically was mouth-blown glass and in olden times, the glass blowers couldn’t make a smooth, stable bottom. It was called a fiasco because it was wobbly, unstable. The only way to keep it standing upright was to put it in some container. So the bottles were set into a basket and then secured with additional weaving. Hence, the original stereotypical and very romantic bottle in a basket idea. The original meaning was never lost, so those bottles retained their wobbly persona.

Today in Italy, the bottles can still be found in various sizes wrapped in a woven basket that is either substantial or delicate, depending on the need. The bottle has no “legs” of its own and so is totally dependent upon the support of the wicker.

In English, probably very few people know the origin of the fiasco. They just know that a flask is now an “upscale” bottle from which to personally drink liquor. The only other flask that I’m aware of is found in chemistry classes, but they usually accompany a beaker and some test tubes, which is a different topic altogether. The personal beverage flask seems to have lost its connection with its roots. It’s only a bottle, usually a squashed shape, easily held in one hand. Sometimes it’s encased in leather. How far is that from its humble beginnings?

Consider the modern definition of a fiasco—something that’s a mess, or out of control. Something unstable. Huh?? Sounds familiar, right? Wobbly. Unstable. Unable to stand without external support. Maybe drinking from a flask results in behavior that can only be described as a fiasco.

Posted on October 23, 2010

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