Hypenated [Was: Agnostic (non-theological)]

Victor Steinbok aardvark66 at GMAIL.COM
Tue Dec 7 02:25:41 UTC 2010


Final bit--note that OED has the archaic (historic?) definition of
"hyphenated" in this context, restricting it to "naturalized citizen".
Contemporary usage indicates simply an identification with a particular
ethnic, religious, racial or linguistic group, without the necessary
restriction of naturalized citizenship. That is, there is no need for
the "hyphenated" to either be naturalized (the first citation earlier
specifically refers to third-generation, "natural-born" citizens) or
citizen (any immigrant or descendant of immigrants would do).

On 12/6/2010 9:18 PM, Victor Steinbok wrote:
> If anyone cares, this piece predates the OED earliest citation for
> "hyphenated adj. 2." by 4 years. Of course, the fact that Farmer
> (1893) already had "hyphenated America" under "slang" indicates that
> there should be even earlier references.
>
> I found the original N&Q 1852 piece cited for "hyphenated 1." but was
> unable to find any earlier cites.
>
> On 12/6/2010 9:03 PM, Victor Steinbok wrote:
>> ...
>> http://goo.gl/OVXwk
>> The Deseret Weekly. July 6, 1889
>> Letter from Junius. June 24, 1889
>>> The /Daily News /speaks of the Cronin case as follows:
>>> "A fresh illustration of the vice of hyphenated American citizenship
>>> is afforded by the protest of the 'British - American Association,'
>>> directed at the President and Secretary of State for the appointment
>>> of Patrick Egan to the post of United States minister to Chili. Not
>>> that the appointment does not call for protest and denunciation; it
>>> was, on the contrary, one wholly unfit to be made. But it should be
>>> protested against and denounced by American citizens from the
>>> standpoint of American citizenship, pure and simple. The
>>> 'British-American' standpoint from which to criticise the national
>>> affairs of this country is as foreign and out of place as Is the
>>> 'Irish-American' or 'GermanAmerican.'
>> ...

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org



More information about the Ads-l mailing list