Q One of my favorite poets is Ted Kooser, who is the current “poet laureate” of the United States. What’s the story behind the name for this position? – P.B., Billings, Mont.

A: The position of the poet laureate was established in England in the 17th century as a way of recognizing poetic excellence. Originally a salaried member of the royal household, the first poet to fill the position was Ben Jonson, who was granted a pension by King James I in 1616 for providing poetic services to the crown. The title “poet laureate” was first bestowed on Jonson’s successor, Sir William Davenant, and it was not until Davenant’s death that the position was officially recognized as an established royal office to be filled when vacant.

In 1936, by means of an endowment from the author Archer M. Huntington, a similar position was established in the United States for the person holding the chair of poetry at the Library of Congress. The title of “poet laureate” was created in 1985 to refer to the person who holds the post of consultant in poetry for the Library of Congress. Poets laureate in the U.S. receive modest stipends and are usually expected to fulfill certain ceremonial duties.

The word “laureate” in Middle English means “crowned with laurel as a distinction,” and ultimately derives from the Latin noun “laurus,” meaning “laurel.” It comes from the classic tradition, dating to ancient Greek and Roman times, of honoring achievement by placing a crown of laurel upon a person’s head. The laurel tree was considered sacred to Apollo, patron of poets.

Q I heard that the word “gossip” used to mean “a relative.” How did we get from that meaning to “a person with loose lips”? – W.R., Fort Pierce, Fla.

A: Strange as it may seem, the fodder of today’s tabloids has sacramental roots. In Old English, “sibb” occurs as a noun meaning “kinship” and as an adjective meaning “related by blood or kinship.” By the 11th century, a compound had been formed from the noun “sibb” prefixed by “god,” the predecessor of Modern English “god.” A “godsibb,” therefore, was a person spiritually related to another, specifically by being a sponsor at baptism. Today, of course, we would call such a person a “godmother” or “godfather.”

By the 14th century, the “d” of “godsipp” had begun to disappear; the word developed into “gossib” and then, through devoicing of the final consonant, “gossip.” The meaning, too, had begun to change, and the sense of “gossip” as a close friend or comrade developed alongside the sense of a godparent. Since close friends normally talk about family and other friends, it was only a short step to the “gossip” of today, a person who is no longer necessarily friend, relative or sponsor, but someone filled with irresistible tidbits of rumor.

A further extension of meaning occurred in the early 1800s, when “gossip” was first used to refer to the rumors or reports that such people like to spread. This was the sense used by Washington Irving in “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” (1820), when he described Ichabod Crane as “a kind of traveling gazette, carrying the whole budget of local gossip from house to house.”

This column was prepared by the editors of Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth Edition. Readers may send questions to Merriam-Webster’s Wordwatch, P.O. Box 281, 47 Federal St., Springfield, MA 01102.