Why do Americans call a fringe angs?
“Bangs,” the hair style, does indeed come from the same roots as “bang,” the sound of a gun, a slamming door, or countless other abrupt noises. The word “bang” first appeared in written English in the 16th century, but is thought to have been known in the dialects of Northern England long before that date. “Bang” comes from an Old Norse word “banga” meaning “to hammer,” and is a linguistic relic of the Viking invasions of England beginning in the eighth century. “Bang” at first meant “to strike violently,” but gradually the word came to be used for any sudden or violent movement, especially one which caused a loud noise. One of the earliest written examples of this expanded sense of “bang” refers to slamming a door, an apparently universal human action which may yet prove to be as great an instrument of self- expression as the typewriter. Aside from doors, nearly anything could go “bang,” from guns to pianos, and “bang” also came to mean fight or beat up. “Bang” continued to evolve, an
