amateur of the day: anti-clockwise (and counter-clockwise)

[Laurence Horn]

No mention of the opposite of withershins/widdershins in any of the below, viz. "deasil" (= 'with the apparent direction of the sun', i.e. clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere).  Note that "widdershins" and "deasil" are respectively clockwise and counter-clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere, assuming that one's analog clocks go in the same direction there as they do here.  In another generation, nobody will know what counter- (or anti-)clockwise refers to.

LH

On Aug 26, 2011, at 2:42 PM, victor steinbok wrote:

> The "amateur" is Keith Humphries of RBC blog:
>
> http://goo.gl/99OoC
>
>> Listening just now to a radio report of the counter-clockwise spinning
>> Irene hurricane called to mind a night some years ago when I was lost in the
>> Surrey darkness, trying to find the house of an English friend. My friend
>> called me and said that I had made a mistake by turning left at the ring
>> road, where I should have instead traveled “anti-clockwise”.
>> I was surprised at the term, which I had never heard before. Its meaning is
>> transparent on its face, but what threw me off was that my friend didn’t use
>> my mother’s word “widdershins”, which I knew came from her UK ancestors. To
>> them, widdershins meant particularly walking around a church with the wall
>> always to one’s left rather than right, which could bring the devil’s curse
>> of bad luck.
>
>
>
> Compare OED:
>
> withershins | widdershins, adv.
>> Forms:  15– widder-, 16– wither-, (15 widdir-, weddir-, wod(d)er-, 15, 18
>> wooder-); 15–18 -sins, 15– -shins, (15 -syns, -shynes, -shynnis, -son(n)is,
>> 15, 18 -sinnis, -sones, 16 -shines, 18 -schynnes).... (Show More)
>> Etymology:  < Middle Low German weddersin(ne)s (compare wedersins
>> ‘contrario modo’, Kilian), < Middle High German widersinnes, < wider-wither-
>> prefix + genitive of sin (especially Middle German) = sind, sint way,
>> direction (see sithe n.1): compare Middle High German widersinnen to return.
>> In sense 2 associated with son, sun n.1... (Show Less)
>> dial. (chiefly Sc.).
>> †1. In a direction opposite to the usual; the wrong way; to stand or start
>> withershins , (of the hair) to ‘stand on end’. Obs.
>> 2. In a direction contrary to the apparent course of the sun (considered
>> as unlucky or causing disaster).
>>
>
>
> withershin(s) | widdershin(s), adj.
>> Etymology:  < withershins adv.
>>  Moving in an anticlockwise direction, contrary to the apparent course of
>> the sun (considered as unlucky or sinister); unlucky, ill-fated, relating to
>> the occult.
>
>
>
> Note "anti-clockwise" both in the adj. lemma and in the blog post.
> Anti-clockwise has examples from 1898 to 1927, but that's still not as
> out-of-date as counter-clockwise, which only has two--1888 and 1890.
>
> GB search for {anticloskwise | "anti-clockwise"} <1898 returns 272 raw
> ghits, 52 raw for <1888, 12 actual, including three spuriously tagged and 9
> math texts.
>
> http://goo.gl/kzjBv
> Proceedings of the Royal Society of London, Volume 29. June 19, 1879
> On the Secular Effects of Tidal Friction. By G. H. Darwin. pp. 176-7
>
>> i. Then in fig. 1, for all points of the line of momentum from C through E
>> to infinity, /x/ is negative and /y/ is positive; therefore this indicates
>> an anti-clockwise revolution of the satellite, and a clockwise rotation of
>> the planet, but the m. of m. planetary rotation is greater than that of the
>> orbital motion.
>> ...
>> ii. For all points of the line of momentum from D through F to infinity,
>> /x/ is positive and /y/ is negative; therefore the motion of the satellite
>> is clockwise, and that of the planetary rotation anti-clockwise, but the m.
>> of m. of the orbital motion is greater than that of the planetary rotation.
>
>
>
> One of the other hits (1939) is a dictionary that lists sinister==climbing
> anti-clockwise.
>
> Similar search for counterclockwise yields 331 raw ghits <1888, 9 <1877,
> including 7 spuriously tagged. The remaining 2 are from the same year.
>
>
> http://goo.gl/rLwaK
> Principles of Mechanism. 2nd ed. By Robert Willis. London: 1870
> p. 158
>
>> Consequently if the screw be left handed, it must be turned counter
>> clockwise to enter a fixed nut, or put a movable nut in action upon the
>> extremity of its screw.
>
> p. 233
>
>> Thus a series of points is obtained through which the curves can be drawn
>> as in Fig. 228 and theoretically they satisfy the condition of equalising
>> the velocity of the reciprocating piece. If the lower curve, which is the
>> driver, be rotated counter-clockwise its increasing radii will enable it
>> to press against the decreasing radii of the follower until the concave
>> salient point which terminates the long diameter of the driver is brought
>> into contact with /b/.
>
> p. 428
>
>> We have already seen that the arrangement of the cord /DW/ prevents the
>> cylinder from revolving counter-clockwise, and leaves it free to be turned
>> the reverse way, while on the other hand the motion given by raising and
>> lowering the knob *G *grasps the cylinder and communicates rotation to it.
>> As this rotation is in the direction of the clock, when the knob is raised
>> the cord *BW *serves merely to steady the motion.
>
>
>
> http://goo.gl/jvJPb
> Geometric Optics. By Osmund Airy. London: 1870
> p. 18
>
>> For convenience the algebraic sign of the moment is said to be /positive/
>> when the moment tends to turn the body in a direction /counter-clockwise/,
>> and /negative/ when it tends to turn the body in the /clockwise/ direction.
>
> pp. 51-2
>
>> 30. ... If the couple tends to produce rotation in the clockwise
>> direction, the moment is said to be negative; and if counterclockwise,
>> positive.
>> 31. Representation of Couples. -- The couple involves magnitude (moment)
>> and direction (rotation), and may, therefore, be represented by an arrow,
>> the length of the line being proportional to the moment of the couple, and
>> the arrow indicating the direction of rotation. In order to make the matter
>> of direction of rotation clear, the agreement is made that the arrow be
>> drawn perpendicular to the plane of the couple on that side from which the
>> rotation appears counter-clockwise.
>> 32. ... The moment arrow of the resultant couple will be perpendicular to
>> the cover of the book and on the side from which the rotation appears
>> counter-clockwise. ...
>
> p. 169
>
>> Angular velocity involves a magnitude and a direction, and may, therefore,
>> be represented by an arrow (see Fig. 119), the length of the arrow
>> representing the magnitude and drawn perpendicular to the plane of motion
>> such that if you look along the arrow, from its point, the motion appears
>> positive or negative; positive if counter-clockwise and negative if
>> clockwise.
>
>
>
> Both conventions (left-handed screw==counter-clockwise; positive direction
> of rotation==counter-clockwise) are fairly standard today, so it's
> interesting to find both in the same year, but it is doubtful either one is
> original.  In fact, I am absolutely shocked that there is nothing in GB
> earlier than 1870 for either term. No point post-dating either one, as they
> are quite common (well, one more than the other). In any case, both need
> updated quotations on both ends.
>
> VS-)
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
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------------------------------------------------------------
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