Non-native linguistic detachment

[Laurence Horn]

At 2:45 PM -0500 12/26/07, Wilson Gray wrote:
>Well, I didn't become conscious of the connection between "grass" and
>"graze" until after I had figured out what a Swedish friend meant by
>"sheep _grassing_ on a meadow." Yet, I'd always been conscious of the
>connection between "glass" and "glaze." You never know.
>
>-Wilson

Actually that's true for me too, I suspect
because of the existence of "glazier" and the
absence of "grazier".

LH

>
>On Dec 26, 2007 9:36 AM, Dennis R. Preston <preston at msu.edu> wrote:
>>  ---------------------- Information from the
>>mail header -----------------------
>>  Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>  Poster:       "Dennis R. Preston" <preston at MSU.EDU>
>>  Subject:      Re: Non-native linguistic detachment
>>
>>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>  Piwnica means only cellar or basement in polish;
>>  a brewery is a piwonia or, especially in western
>>  Poland what I take to be a Germanic loan - browar.
>>
>>  dInIs
>>
>>  >---------------------- Information from the mail
>>  >header -----------------------
>>  >Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>  >Poster:       Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
>>  >Subject:      Re: Non-native linguistic detachment
>>  >-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>  >
>>  >Polish "piwo" [p'ivo] - "pivo" [p'iv@] in Russian - is from the Slavic
>>  >verb-root _pi-_ "drink," related in turn to the Homeric and Classical
>>  >Greek verb root _pi-_ "drink." Cf. Homeric
>>  >
>>  >Kuklops, te. _Pi-E_ [w]OInOn. "Cyclops, here. Drink [some] wine."
>>  >
>>  >"Pivnica" means ""brewery" in Russian, but may mean something
>>  >different in Polish. Cf. Czech _zhivot_ "life" (vs. "death") as
>>  >opposed to Russian _zhivot_ "belly. abdomen."
>>  >
>>  >-Wilson
>>  >
>>  >On Dec 24, 2007 11:27 AM, Damien Hall <halldj at babel.ling.upenn.edu> wrote:
>>  >>  ---------------------- Information from the
>>  >>mail header -----------------------
>>  >>  Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>  >>  Poster:       Damien Hall <halldj at BABEL.LING.UPENN.EDU>
>>  >>  Subject:      Non-native linguistic detachment
>>  >>
>>  >>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>  >>
>>  >>  dInIs said:
>>  >>
>>  >>  ==================
>>  >>
>>  >>  I always remember sitting in a basement beer bar drinking beer with
>>  >>  Polish friends when it struck me that one of the Polish words for
>>  >>  basement (piwnica) must have been connected to beer (piwo) - beer
>>  >>  storing place? It is, of course, but none of the native speakers with
>>  >>  me (all linguists!) had ever noticed the connection, and the phonetic
>>  >>  modification in the case was minimal.
>>  >>
>>  >>  ==================
>>  >>
>>  >>  Sometimes it takes a bit of detachment from a
>>  >>case to notice stuff like this.  I
>>  >>  remember once being at a party with other
>>  >>linguists in Philadelphia where the
>>  >>  local lager Juengling was being served.  The
>>  >>question came up as to where the
>>  >>  name had come from;  I was surprised that
>>anyone should even be asking the
>>  >>  question, since it seemed very likely to
>>me (especially given the partially
>>  >>  German settlement history of the area)
>>that it was simply the German word
>>  >>  *J¸ngling* 'young man'.  A German friend among
>>  >>us didn't spot it, though;  her
>>  >>  first thought was that it looked like something Chinese.
>>  >>
>>  >>  I agree with the nomination for Quote of the
>>  >>Year.  And it makes me think:  how
>>  >>  do we pronounce these acronyms?  Is there an
>>  >>accepted way?  (Never been to the
>>  >>  ADS Annual Meeting.)  If Word Of The Year is
>>  >>/wowti:/, can Quote Of The Year be
>>  >>  /kwowti:/?
>>  >>
>>  >>  Damien Hall
>>  >>  University of Pennsylvania
>>  >>
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>>  >>
>  > >
>>  >
>>  >
>>  >--
>>  >All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
>>  >come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
>>  >-----
>>  >                                               -Sam'l Clemens
>>  >
>>  >------------------------------------------------------------
>>  >The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>
>>
>>  --
>>  Dennis R. Preston
>>  University Distinguished Professor
>>  Department of English
>>  15C Morrill Hall
>>  Michigan State University
>>  East Lansing, MI 48824
>>  517-353-4736
>>  preston at msu.edu
>>
>>  ------------------------------------------------------------
>>  The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>>
>
>
>
>--
>All say, "How hard it is that we have to die"---a strange complaint to
>come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
>-----
>                                               -Sam'l Clemens
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org