LL-L "Etymology" 2007.04.26 (08) [E]

[Lowlands-L List]

L O W L A N D S - L  -  26 April 2007 - Volume 08

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From: Mark Dreyer <mrdreyer at lantic.net>
Subject: LL-L "Etymology" 2007.04.24 (05) [A/D/E]

Dear Ron:

Subject: LL-L "Delectables"
Are you serious about the "bee sting" bit?

Well, yes, but only slightly. I wasn't - amn't happy with that 'sting' &
'stich' bit. & I want that 'beest-' to have something to do with cattle,
even though I know all our mammalian kind's mothers make it.

Your dissertation is yummy both in the liteerary & gastronomic sense, for
which thanks. 'Bienenohren', Ha!

Back for "beestings" ... they ain't no "bee stings," brother.

Yes? So then why do both the Brits & the Germans say it, 'sting' & 'stich',
& as far as I can see, 'bienen' have nothing whatever to do with bovines, at
least until you come to Ferdinand the Bull.

As far as I know, in Low Saxon it's beystmelk ( Beestmelk, Beistmelk),
beystmilk (Beestmilk), etc. (We tend to associate it with Eastern
Friesland.) The original word is beyst. In German it's Biest(milch), English
"beest," from Old English béost. Middle and Modern Dutch has biest, North
Frisian bjast and bjüst.

Aaaah! ---.conceded on all these points, but how then do you distinguish it
from the actual milk, to which the same term ought to be equally
applicable?"

The origin appears to be unknown.

Do you mean to say 'beast', 'beest', 'biest', 'beyst', 'biest', 'bjast',
'bjust', 'beost' & 'bees' & all its cognates in all IE languages are of
unknown origin? At least in this linguistic pool it seems common if not
general. Even the Latin 'bos'  seems to be part of the word-hoarde, hey!
See, in our 'T'-dropping we have exalted precedents.

Oh, you final-t-dropping Afrikaans speakers!  ;-)

Yrs,
Mark ;-)

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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Etymology

Mark,

I guess your "problem" is that you are assuming that there is a connection
between the words in question and the group represented by "beast," Biest,
beyst, biest, etc., namely ' (sort of) animal'.

The latter comes from Latin bestia 'animal' (> Old French beste > Old
English beast, replacing earlier deór).

Of course, it isn't impossible that there's a very early link between all of
the above, also considering the coextistence of German Biest and
Latin-derived German Bestie.  But we can't make such an assumption.

Reinhard/Ron
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