LL-L "Idiomatica" 2007.09.30 (02) [E]

[Lowlands-L List]

L O W L A N D S - L  -  30 September 2007 - Volume 02
Song Contest: lowlands-l.net/contest/ (- 31 Dec. 2007)
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From: "M.-L. Lessing" <marless at gmx.de>
Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2007.09.30 (01) [E]

Hello Ron,

my immediate thoughts: potty = crazy? It is the pot then which has got a
craze, a crack. The pot must be something like the skull that contains the
brain. In German there is the expression "Der kriegt eins auf den Deckel".
The "Deckel" of course covers the pot. Seems like Kückenlatein (kitchen
latin) :-)

Marlou

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From: Jacqueline Bungenberg de Jong <Dutchmatters at comcast.net>
Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2007.09.30 (01) [E]

Hi Ron, Re "potty"…. how about a derivative of crackpot, which might again
be taken as a cracked head.

The interesting thing for me is that in Dutch we have the suffix "pot" for
somebody who has a certain attitude or performs een certain action like in
"Hij is een mopperpot" (Somebody who is always bellyaching) or "Wees nu niet
zo'n zeurpot!" to a child who keeps asking for something that you have said
they could not have. Jacqueline

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From: Global Moose Translations <globalmoose at t-online.de>
Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2007.09.30 (01) [E]

Ron wrote:
> Back to English ... Another idiomatic difference in American and
non-American English is
> that "mad" now means "angry" in the former and mostly still original
"insane" in the latter.
> Obviously, this  can lead to between speakers of these varieties
misunderstanding each other.
 I caused great mirth when visiting my daughter's class in Oregon and asking
one of the boys to pass me a "rubber"! That's how I learned they call it an
eraser in America...

Gabriele Kahn

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From: Sandy Fleming <sandy at scotstext.org>
Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2007.09.30 (01) [E]

Ron wrote:
> Back to English ... Another idiomatic difference in American and
non-American English is
> that "mad" now means "angry" in the former and mostly still original
"insane" in the latter.
> Obviously, this  can lead to between speakers of these varieties
misunderstanding each other.
 I caused great mirth when visiting my daughter's class in Oregon and asking
one of the boys to pass me a "rubber"! That's how I learned they call it an
eraser in America...

Gabriele Kahn

----------

From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2007.09.30 (01) [E]

Thanks, folks!

Jacqueline, ...pot for people rings a bell. In Low Saxon you can use suerpot(
Suurpott, "sour pot") for someone surly, disgruntled, in a bad mood, etc.
And there's gnegelpot (Gnägelpott) for an angry or critical person.

More common is ...buydel (...büdel "...bag"), such as suupbuydel (Suupbüdel)
'drunkard', and gnatterbuydel (Gnatterbüdel) for an angry or critical person
... oh, and schytbuydel (Schietbüdel) for 'baby', also affectionately
usedfor adults, much like "sweety" (!) ...

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the etymology of "potty" is
unclear and it may have come from "petty" (< French petit), since both of
them have the base meaning "insignificant," "feeble" in English.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron
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