Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site eosp1.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!allegra!princeton!eosp1!robison From: robison@eosp1.UUCP (Tobias D. Robison) Newsgroups: net.jokes.d,net.nlang Subject: Origins of Words Message-ID: <1137@eosp1.UUCP> Date: Fri, 21-Sep-84 13:36:01 EDT Article-I.D.: eosp1.1137 Posted: Fri Sep 21 13:36:01 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 25-Sep-84 21:34:23 EDT Organization: Exxon Office Systems, Princeton, NJ Lines: 54 References: We are having a typical discussion of word origins that's worth generalizing a bit. Many people think they "know" origins of particular words because they have heard explanations that make logical sense. They assume: - this explanation is sensible - therefore it is correct. Usually, that reasoning is false. Why then, do so many people apply it? I think that most people have never stopped to think how one traces the origins of a word. Simply put, this is a historical process. One looks for (usually) datable writings in the target leanguage, and in related languages, that use the word or similar words. One must always ask whether the curents of history have allowed one datable instance to influence another. Examining influences from other langauges is an important antidote to the tendency to assume that words were derived by acronyms or wordplay. When you think you have the "original" use of a word, you must be reasonably sure that older uses of the word cannot also be found. My favorite example of misapplied wordplay -- many people "know" that the word "butterfly" is derived from "flutterby". However if you look it up in the Oxford English Dictionary, you will find that it is related to the Dutch Word for the same insect, "boterscheit" (spelling?), which refers to the fact that the insect's feces are the color of butter. The OED is a good source for word origins because, unique among almost all dictionaries, it lists actual uses of each word over the last 1000 years to show how their meanings derived. [A game to play -- try to find English words that have written references in the 10th century.] The New York Times, about 10 years ago, had a "reasonable meaning" contest for the meaning of "Okay". Writers came up with about 10 origins, all based on "commonsense". Not one quoted any historical data to suggest that their use of the word was the oldest. Parodying this style of logic, my wife Elaine suggested the following derivation of "Okay": In medieval Normandy, Monks concerned with loading boats at the docks would reassure their superiors when all of the materials were on the dock and ready to load, that is: "Au Quais". This expression (which sounds about the same as "okay") entered English via french-Creole speakers in New Orleans. - Toby Robison (not Robinson!) allegra!eosp1!robison or: decvax!ittvax!eosp1!robison or (emergency): princeton!eosp1!robison