Sanas of Scud, Scudding, Skedaddle

[Daniel Cassidy]

Scud, Scudding
Sciuird (pron.  scoord),  pl. Sciurdeanna (pron.  scoordang, “nn” = "ng” ) 
Rush, dash; flying quickly; a quick run, a rapid  run; a swift race; a flying 
visit. (Dineen, p. 975; O'Donaill, p. 1055)  (al. sciúrd) 


Thug siad sciuird reatha thar an droichead, they made a  quick run over the 
bridge. 

Paddy is an old Irish-born seaman in The Hairy Ape. 
 
PADDY: “Oh to be scudding south again wid the power of the  Trade Wind 
driving her steady through the nights and days! ...the foam of the  wake would be 
flaming wid fire...” (O'Neill, The Hairy Ape, p. 214) 


Irish jack tars, merchant seaman, sailors. and privateers, called  themselves 
bocaí aniar (buccaneers), "wild playboys of the  west " as they went scudding 
across the world's oceans.
 
 
Scud, v. run, move swiftly. 1532...perhaps verb use of  Middle English scut, 
rabbit, rabbit’s tail (1440); early scot  (probably before 1300); of uncertain 
origin." (Barnhart, p.  974) 


On that note, it is time for me to skedaddle, before a gang  of Harvard 
English Professors  force me to pledge allegiance  to the OED. 
 
 
Skedaddle 
Sciuird ar dólámh    (pron. scoord ar dolaaw)
An all out rush, a quick flying dash. 
 
Sciuird: rush, dash; quick run, flying visit. (OD, p. 1055, see  above)
Ar dólámh (ar dolaaw, "mh" = "w"), all out, strenuously, with both  hands. 
 
 
MILLER (preemptorily): “You kids skedaddle – all  of you.”   (O'Neill, Ah 
Wilderness, p. 93)
 
 
Skedaddle... skeedaddle, v.i. (Of  soldiers) to flee; originates 1861, (in) 
U.S. 'The American War  has produced a new and amusing word. Probably of 
fanciful origin,  though H's 'The word is very fair Greek, the root being that of  
"skeddadumi", to disperse, to retire tumultuously,   and it was probably set 
afloat from some Professor at  Harvard' is not to be dismissed with contempt.'   
  A Dictionary of Slang, Eric Partridge, p. 1076.
 
Time to scram (scaraim, I depart,  separate, fig. "split") 
 
 
Daniel Cassidy 
The Irish Studies Program 
New College of California  
San Francisco
 
12.17.04