The rebirth and use of the _merkin_

[Jonathan Lighter]

Here's the vector that must have done the most to repopularize awareness of
"merkin" (though I'm not at all sure that the word is as well known as some
believe):

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0064123/

The groundwork was laid by _Dr. Strangelove's_ "President Merkin Muffley."

JL



On Thu, Mar 24, 2011 at 7:34 AM, Tom Zurinskas <truespel at hotmail.com> wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Tom Zurinskas <truespel at HOTMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: The rebirth and use of the _merkin_
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> I wonder if "merkin" for American was born as an eggcorn.
> =20
> Instead of saying "I'm an American"=2C one might say "I'm American".
>  which=
>  might be heard as "I'm a merican" (if one is expecting the article "a" or
> =
> "an" there).  Which can be misheard as "I'm a merkin".
> =20
> Some USA accents might say "I'm a merkin".  In Philly for Maryland I've
> hea=
> rd them say Merlin.
>
> Tom Zurinskas=2C Conn 20 yrs=2C then Tenn 3=2C NJ 33=2C now FL 9.
> The FREE English-based phonetic converters=2C URL and text =2C are at
> trues=
> pel.com
>
> =20
> =20
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------=
> ------
> > Sender: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Poster: Wilson Gray <hwgray at GMAIL.COM>
> > Subject: Re: The rebirth and use of the _merkin_
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------=
> ------
> >=20
> > On Wed=2C Mar 23=2C 2011 at 4:31 PM=2C Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at yale.
> =
> edu> wrote:
> > > "a public wig". =C2 Obviously=2C she takes it off in
> > > private.
> >=20
> > That's actually food for thought. Did the writer go to write "pubic"
> > and inadvertently misspell it? Or was it the intention to sneak in a
> > little pun? As when the female protagonist of a TV show casually
> > mentioned that her male friend=2C an underwater welder=2C could hold his
> > breath for three minutes=2C when he went down.
> >=20
> > I'm surprised that the censors let that one go. After all=2C an
> > underwater welder doesn't work holding his breath.
> >=20
> > --
> > -Wilson
> > -----
> > All say=2C "How hard it is that we have to die!"---a strange complaint
> > to come from the mouths of people who have had to live.
> > -Mark Twain
> >=20
>  > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>                                          =
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>



--
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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