Hi all earthing systems and understanding them is something we've all had to do in our working lives. One thing that I think makes it harder to get our heads around different systems and the way they are described is the odd way the letter T is used to mean earth why T? Is it as someone suggested from some word or phrase in Latin? I really don't know for sure what I wonder is tho can the IET or whoever is best placed to do it come up with a more sensible lettering system please? The obvious ones are E or G the rest of the letters could be changed too if needed. The whole aim is I have is to make it all more descriptive so that it's easier to keep in our heads what do you think? Hope someone replys X Kelly
Yes, it's T for Terre - from Latin but via French. From what I understand the nomenclature was an invention of the French that was then adopted by international standards and hence back into national standards like BS 7671.
Just think yourself fortunate that the French words for neutral, combined and separated happen to start with the same letters as the English! (I'm not sure other nations are so lucky)
English being such a mis mash of other languages already has terre or terra in common use - as in terra firma (solid ground) or terracotta (baked earth).
So it's got a French origin that makes it even worse Lol
Not picking on you - this obviously a joke - but I don't think it's fair to say "It's French", a lot of English words have a French origin, but we do talk about terra firma in English, as has already been pointed out - so there's no need to "translate it" into English.
Or perhaps we should start getting rid of words from other languages completely? That would leave us a little short of words to use. Even our word for the origin of words has a root in another language (etymology came to us through French and Latin, but has its original source in Greek: Ετυμολογία).
Incidentally, the latin word "terra" means "earth, ground or land" and is also the root of our word "territory" - the Earth itself (the world) in Latin is Geo, which again is from Greek.
Earth is the Saxon word for "dirt, ground or land", so that's why we're happy with "Terra firma" (firm ground).
Apologies, I find this sort of thing quite interesting ... it sort of shows the facts of chinese whispers, which I think is very pertinent to how standards are interpreted ?
Not picking on you - this obviously a joke - but I don't think it's fair to say "It's French" ...
And of course, French horns don't come from France; and in any event their origins are German. An English electrician may take "French leave", but his or her French counterpart will "filer à l'anglaise". I am not even going to mention a French letter. ?
