Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site rlgvax.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!rlgvax!guy From: guy@rlgvax.UUCP (Guy Harris) Newsgroups: net.jokes.d,net.nlang Subject: Re: Origin of Words Message-ID: <159@rlgvax.UUCP> Date: Mon, 1-Oct-84 01:46:02 EDT Article-I.D.: rlgvax.159 Posted: Mon Oct 1 01:46:02 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 2-Oct-84 07:36:38 EDT References: <1541@uvacs.UUCP> Organization: CCI Office Systems Group, Reston, VA Lines: 24 > ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > > > 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. > > > > According to my high school German teacher, the word OK comes from > > the name of an inspector in a VW plant, Otto K???, who wrote his > > initials on each car that passed inspection. Of course, I don't have > > any definitive references either. > > I'm suprised that nobody's just gone to the dictionary for this. ... The first "explanation" (about the monks) was (as stated in the original article) a deliberately constructed false origin of "OK", done as an example of the sort of factoids given as word origins during a discussion of the origin of the word "f*ck". It's interesting how much discussion a red herring which never claimed to be anything but has kicked off... Guy Harris {seismo,ihnp4,allegra}!rlgvax!guy