When Meat Left the Menu
It doesn’t matter which side of the fence you land on when it comes to vegetarianism; you likely got there after thinking about personal preferences, ethics, animal rights, personal philosophy, or a mix of all four…or maybe you just really like tofu. October 1 is World Vegetarian Day, but the whole idea of NOT eating meat has been around long before calendars could mark the date.
Today’s Trivia Question
Where does the Vegetarian Society (established in England in the 1800s) trace the earliest known printed use of the word vegetarian?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
Bonus if you know how many years before the Vegetarian Society was founded that the word appeared in print.
| A Few More for Fun… |
The first meeting was chaired by Joseph Brotherton, a Member of Parliament for Salford, and someone who had long championed a meatless diet. He had inherited some of his theories from a man with a name suspiciously aligned with the whole history of vegetarianism.
What’s the name of the minister who preached in favor of meat-free eating in 1809?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
What is the name of the British physician who adopted a plant-food-only diet in 1806 and later wrote about it?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
| A Few More Trivia Questions Before You Go… |
The story began with food, but it very rapidly wandered into clean water, social reform, and even the creation of an entirely new word!
History
The journal titled The Truth Tester was an early vehicle for the promotion of vegetarianism. What other reform did it support?
(pick one to reveal the answer)
Language
Answers
| TODAY’S QUESTIONAnswer: C. The Healthian Journal. First appearing in the publication in 1842, it was a period when advocates of a “meat-free” diet were already at odds over health, ethics, and what was then frequently called the “vegetable diet.” The official society only came later. Bonus points if you knew the word appeared five years before the founding of the Vegetarian Society in 1847. So the word had already made a few rounds prior to people hopping on the bandwagon. | |
| 01 | Answer: B. William Cowherd. Yes, Cowherd. He was the leader of the Bible Christian Church in Salford, and often urged congregants to give up eating animals. He allowed for dairy products and eggs, meaning he was an ovo-lacto vegetarian. He wasn’t alone in experimenting with a meatless diet… |
| 02 | Answer: C. William Lambe. Yes, Lambe. The irony of the names in the story deserves recognition, but so too does the revolutionary way of thinking. Lambe excluded eggs and dairy, and spoke about more than food. The Vegetarian Society credits him with raising surprisingly early concerns about the quality of London’s drinking water. It was his protégé, John Snow, who would later become famous for tying a cholera outbreak to a specific water source in the city. The British movement would become more organized, and even get a holiday. |
| 03 | Answer: C. 1977. NAVS established World Vegetarian Day in 1977, and the International Vegetarian Union endorsed it a year later; October 1 became the official date. |
| 04 | Answer: D. Temperance. The editor of the publication, William Horsell (yes, Horsell), gradually used the publication to promote vegetarianism. In 1847, a reader wrote to the publication to suggest that advocates should establish a society devoted to that cause. Within months, it was done. |
| 05 | Answer: B. Vegan. Watson later explained that vegan used the first three letters and last two letters of vegetarian, representing what he said was the “beginning and end of vegetarian.” The word vegetarian appeared before vegetarianism had an organized society. Major players ironically included Cowherd, Lambe, and Horsell, and their efforts would eventually lead to vegetarianism earning its own place on the calendar. Sometimes an idea arrives before there are words for it, or even a good substitute for bacon! |
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How did you do?
Score 1 point for each correct answer and 1 point for the bonus if you knew it. Perfect score: 7.
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