LL-L "Etymology" 2004.08.26 (08) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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L O W L A N D S - L * 26.AUG.2004 (08) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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A=Afrikaans Ap=Appalachian B=Brabantish D=Dutch E=English F=Frisian
L=Limburgish LS=Lowlands Saxon (Low German) N=Northumbrian
S=Scots Sh=Shetlandic V=(West)Flemish Z=Zeelandic (Zeêuws)
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From: john feather <johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk>
Subject: Etymology

An interesting discussion about linguistic change got cut off. We were
considering how the phrase "break a leg" might have arisen from a Hebrew
phrase with a completely different meaning. John Baskind seemed to be
arguing that phonetic similarity was not a sufficient basis for semantic
shift. But this is an empirical matter, not a theoretical one.

Elements of borrowed words are often assimilated to existing words and
word-elements in the borrowing language. There is the amusing case of
"gunsel" from the Yiddish for "gosling" which acquired the sense "catamite"
but then, because of "gun-", became understood as "gunman", supposedly
because Elisha Cook Jr's character in "The Maltese Falcon" was allegedly
both. In the case of "worm-wood" and "cock-roach" both parts are
phonetically but not semantically related to the corresponding parts of the
source words. Phrases are more difficult. There is a story that the name
"Elephant and Castle", an area in South London, comes from the pub name
"Infanta of Castile" but less excitingly it has been attributed to a pub
using as its sign the arms of the Cutlers Company, which depicted an
elephant and a castle. The best example I can think of at the moment is the
occasional interpretation of Span "mano a mano" as "man to man". Here, of
course, the phrase is assimilated to an existing English phrase but it's not
hard to imagine the same thing happening in some other case.

Can anybody think of better examples in any relevant pair of languages,
excluding deliberate jokes?

John Feather
johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk

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From: john feather <johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk>
Subject: Etymology

Gabriele wrote:
>the primary meaning of the word "mor" in Swedish is "mother", and this is
how I understand the term ... may be related to German "Mutterboden"
(literally "mother soil"), which denotes the fertile top layer of soil in
which plants grow. Since this natural mulch layer ...<

Interesting, but this is a horribly difficult area. In specialist circles a
distinction is made between E. "mor", "moder" and "mulch" depending on the
degree of decomposition. Chambers Dictionary gives this "moder" as from Ger
"Moder", meaning "decay", "mould" and in LS "mud".

Mike mentioned "swimming hole". I have always taken this to be a US
expression and Chambers Etymological Dictionary traces it to a US source in
1867, but I once met someone who was adamant that it was used in England.
Any ideas about this? Apparently "hole" may in some cases reflect an ON
meaning "pool, deep water" (in this sense it's used for places where the sea
is especially deep) so I suppose "swimming hole" could occasionally turn up
for this reason but as a general term ... ?

Thanks, Roger, for your remarks on "te allen tijde". You wrote:

>The only correct form of the expression is "te allen tijde". 'Tijde', and
not 'tijden', because the noun is clearly singular. <

I just wondered why the noun is "clearly singular": the evidence suggests
that a lot of Ned speakers take it to be plural. In E. we say "the whole
time" but "at all times".

Sorry I was so wrong in attempting to explain "ten". It's annoying to find a
serious book which says that the "n" is inserted for euphony but doesn't
give any examples! At least I now know what it meant!

John Feather
johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk

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