language puzzle

[Mark Konecny]

Very interesting. Among Czech Texans, who arrived in the mid 1800s and 
preserved the language (still spoken as a kind of slang in the 1980s) 
"haniak" was applied to non-czechs who were rather dense.



Jules Levin wrote:
> On another list devoted to genealogy, there has arisen a puzzling term 
> used on a ship's manifest to describe
> hair color.  Here is a quote:
>
> Typed manifests give hair color of "hane" for some of the foreign
> passengers, a good many of whom are Czech.  By process of elimination,
> the word must mean "blond", given the other entries: "black," "brown,"
> "dark," "grey".
>
> No one recognizes "hane" as a color term in English.  The suggestion 
> that it is henna has been
> rejected, since those so described include many men and children.  
> Ships' manifests are
> compiled at the departure point, and perhaps some Czech term slipped 
> in here.  Any ideas?
>
> Jules Levin
> Los Angeles
>
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