"folk" with an L

[Eric Nielsen]

Quite right. I often forget it's the "Czech Republic", now. As for
Bohemia being a country, I know that is before my time.

Eric

On Fri, Mar 19, 2010 at 11:09 AM, Charles Doyle <cdoyle at uga.edu> wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Charles Doyle <cdoyle at UGA.EDU>
> Subject:      Re: "folk" with an L
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> That is, from the country formerly known as "Bohemia"--formerly in the
> country formerly known as "Czechoslovokia."
>
> --Charlie
>
>
> ---- Original message ----
> >Date: Fri, 19 Mar 2010 10:18:34 -0400
> >From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> (on behalf of
> Eric Nielsen <ericbarnak at GMAIL.COM
> >)>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >I believe the Polka (dance) is originally from Czechloslovakia--more
> >specifically Bohemia. What's very strange is that it is, I think,
> generally
> >assumed to be Polish in origin.
> >
> >Two years ago, my young cousin, Magda, was visiting from Poland. People
> were
> >trying to impress her with their collections of Polka music, to which she
> >replied, "That's not even Polish."
> >
> >Eric
> >
> >
> >On Thu, Mar 18, 2010 at 6:38 PM, Wilson Gray <hwgray at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >> -----------------------
> >> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >> Poster:       Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
> >> Subject:      Re: "folk" with an L
> >>
> >>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >>
> >> FWIW, I've heard this cheer story for so long - ca. forty years - from
> so
> >> many different people from Norfolk that *I* believe it.
> >>
> >> OTOH, that there are Northern-white speakers who don't pronounce the "l"
> in
> >> the name of the dance is a real surprise!
> >>
> >> As for "polka-dot," I've never noticed anything special WRT the
> >> pronunciation of it. It goes without out saying that the word "polka,"
> for
> >> all practical purposes, doesn't exist in BE. My wife points out that she
> >> just recently bought a new, po[l]ka-dot nightgown. "Polka-dot" is so
> rare
> >> i=
> >> n
> >> my speech that I have no idea how it sounds unmonitored: po[l]ka-dot and
> >> po[w]ka-dot both fall equally trippingly from the tongue.
> >>
> >> How can anyone tell what language "polka" is from, since the word is the
> >> same in nearly every Slavic language? Historical dancistics, I suppose.
> ;-)
> >>
> >> -Wilson
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
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