Unreal

At A.Word.A.Day this very day, Anu Garg features the phrase “Land of Oz.” He defines its common usage as “An unreal or magical place,” which may be half right.

Garg links to Snopes.com’s page on the derivation of the word “Oz”. From early on, L. Frank Baum said his inspiration came from a filing cabinet marked A–N and O–Z. The problem is that Baum wasn’t above improving stories for the sake of publicity.

“Land of Oz” is part of a series of Word.A.Day postings on words and phrases derived from mythical places, including one that’s been in my mind as I considered legends of abundant salmon: cockaigne.