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<p class="MsoNormal"><font> </font></p>From: <span class="gI"><span class="gD">Marcus Buck</span> <span class="go"><a href="mailto:list@marcusbuck.org">list@marcusbuck.org</a></span></span><br>
Subject: <span class="gI">LL-L "Etymology" 2012.04.16 (03) [DE-EN-NDS]</span><br>
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From: R. F. Hahn <<a href="mailto:sassisch@yahoo.com" target="_blank">sassisch@yahoo.com</a>><br>
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<div> Subject: Etymology<br>
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Dear Lowlanders,<br>
<br>
Today, our Hanne wrote something about German <i>Ohrwurm</i>
([ˈʔoːɐ̆vʊɜ̆m]) and Low Saxon <i>Ohrworm ~ Uhrw</i>orm
([ˈʔɔʊˑɜ̆vɔˑɐ̆m] ~ [ˈʔuːɜ̆vɔˑɐ̆m]), literally
"earworm", (Wikipedia: "catchy tune; or a piece of
music that sticks in one's mind so that one seems to
hear it, even when it is not being played").<br>
<br>
<div style="margin-left:40px;color:rgb(0,0,153)"><a href="http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohrwurm" target="_blank">http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohrwurm</a><br>
<br>
<a href="http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohrw%C3%BCrmer" target="_blank">http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohrwürmer</a><br>
<br>
<b>Uhrworm </b>m. Ohrwurm; <i>Oorworm, Urworm</i>:
<i>en Kirl as en Uhrworm (ein beweglicher, wendiger
Mann) </i>REUTER; ironisch und warnend: jem. ist
<i>fründlich as 'n Uhrworm. </i>Syn.: <i>Uhrenkniper,
Uhrslüser.</i><br>
Lit.: Perfesser Voßlo<br>
<br>
<b>Ohrwurm, </b>m., Ohrworm, pl. -wörm;
Ohrklauer/-kröpel [ǭ]/ -kruper, m., pl. -s<br>
Lit.: GÜNTER HARTE - JOHANNA HARTE<br>
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<br>
English happens to have the a direct cognate
("earworm"), as do Dutch and Afrikaans (<i>oorwurm</i>),
and Limburgish (<font><i>oerwórm</i>),</font> as does
French (<i>ver d'oreille</i>). Within this specific
context, Japanese has borrowed from English <i>iyāwāmu</i>
(イヤーワーム), phonologically adapted.<br>
<br>
I am interested in cognates in other languages and in
knowing in which ways this lexical construction, this
semantic extension, may have spread. Please bear in
mind that "earworm" is the same as "earwig" in some
languages. This is a different kind of thing, an
actual insect.<br>
<br>
Thanks in advance for any info and clues!<br>
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I tried looking for info in Google Books and Google Ngrams. The
expression seems to be young. The oldest German reference I could
find was from Sigismund von Radecki's <i>Weisheit für Anfänger</i>
in 1956: <i><span>Wie der Schlager als musikalischer <em>Ohrwurm</em>
in alle Gehörswindungen kriecht, so schlüpft auch das Schlagwort
in jene des Gehirns, und dabei sind Worte ja doch mächtiger als
<em>Musik</em>.
(<a href="http://books.google.de/books?id=sWhGAQAAIAAJ&q=%22ohrwurm%22+musik&dq=%22ohrwurm%22+musik&hl=de&sa=X&ei=6a6NT-rrEsbRtAaGn6GhCQ&redir_esc=y" target="_blank"><http://books.google.de/books?id=sWhGAQAAIAAJ&q=%22ohrwurm%22+musik&dq=%22ohrwurm%22+musik&hl=de&sa=X&ei=6a6NT-rrEsbRtAaGn6GhCQ&redir_esc=y></a>)<br>
<br>
</span></i><span>The oldest reference in English texts</span><span> I could find is from 1991, in the English translation
(<i>The bride price</i>) of a novel by German novelist Grete Weil</span><i><span>: </span><span>In the vernacular, it's
called an "<em>earworm</em>" — words, bits of <em>music</em>
that won't leave you alone. </span></i><span>(<a href="http://books.google.de/books?id=jUbuAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Earworm%22" target="_blank"><http://books.google.de/books?id=jUbuAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Earworm%22></a>)</span><i><span><br>
<br>
</span></i><span>It seems, German is the original
source of this meme and it's based on the mental image of a small
vermin creeping into your ear.<span class="HOEnZb"><font color="#888888"><br>
<br>
Marcus Buck</font></span></span><i><span></span></i><br><br>
<i><br>
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