Davano for davenport

[Barbara Need]

>I think 'davenport' has lost popularity as well. Couch or sofa are
>what I usually hear now.  Maybe the length of 'davenport' has
>contributed to its demise.  I have also come across people who had
>never heard the word 'davenport'.  Is it totally unknown in some
>parts of the country?
>Fritz
>

My sense of the word is that it describes a piece of furniture
popular before I was born (1959). I think the first time I heard/read
with word was in _Peanuts_, and that my reaction was, what is that
(in fact, I think Lucy says to Charlie Brown during a game of Cowboys
and Indians, I shot him behind the davenport, and if that's not fatal
I don't know what is"). It was NOT a word I heard growing up near
Cleveland.

Barbara Need
UChicago--Linguistics