Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!mcnc!ncsu!uvacs!rwl From: rwl@uvacs.UUCP Newsgroups: net.jokes.d,net.nlang Subject: Re: Origin of Words Message-ID: <1541@uvacs.UUCP> Date: Thu, 27-Sep-84 21:01:48 EDT Article-I.D.: uvacs.1541 Posted: Thu Sep 27 21:01:48 1984 Date-Received: Sun, 30-Sep-84 04:08:11 EDT Lines: 37 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > 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. Mine at home (Webster's 7th Collegiate, I think) has this to say about 'OK'... OK, O.K. (...) adj., adv., interj. [orig. U.S. colloq.: first known use (March 23, 1839) by C.G. Greene, editor, in the Boston _Morning_Post_, as if abbrev. for "oll korrect", facetious misspelling of _all_correct_ (cf. _Am._Speech_, Vol. XXXVIII, No. 1): popularized by use in name of Demo- cratic _O.K._ Club (1840), in allusion to _Old_Kinderhook_, native village of Martin Van Buren, whom the club supported for a 2d term ] Now. Since that's out of the way, everybody can get back to arguing. OK? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ray Lubinsky University of Virginia uucp: decvax!mcnc!ncsu!uvacs!rwl usmail: ...get serious, who mails anything these days? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------