pomophobe

[Jonathan Lighter]

In later life Snow White suffered from pomophobia.  But potatoes were OK.

JL

On Tue, May 3, 2011 at 7:30 PM, Joel S. Berson <Berson at att.net> wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Joel S. Berson" <Berson at ATT.NET>
> Subject:      Re: pomophobe
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> At 5/3/2011 06:17 PM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
> >To me, the "ancients" are Homer and Vergil.  You must be younger than me.
>
> Perhaps.  But I thought I had found the origin of
> "pomophobia".  See Wikipedia on the potato, section "Africa" --
> "Like in other continents, in spite of its
> advantages as an antifamine, high-elevation
> alternative to grain, the potato was at first
> resisted by local farmers who thought it was poisonous."
>
> And snopes.com on "Claim: Green potatoes are
> poisonous. / Status: True."  Any green part.
>
> JSB
>
>
> >JL
> >
> >On Tue, May 3, 2011 at 5:40 PM, Joel S. Berson <Berson at att.net> wrote:
> >
> > > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > > -----------------------
> > > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > > Poster:       "Joel S. Berson" <Berson at ATT.NET>
> > > Subject:      Re: pomophobe
> > >
> > >
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >
> > > At 5/3/2011 04:47 PM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
> > > >See, an apple in Latin is "pomum."  It's kind of a play on words.
> > > >
> > > >But the ancients didn't have potatoes, so I don't see how they could
> have
> > > >been afraid of them.
> > > >
> > > >Except perhaps in dreams....
> > >
> > > Or in the Latin writings of the Spanish clerics
> > > who accompanied the Conquest.  The Spanish
> > > brought the potato to Europe in the late 16th
> > > century.  I believe they were considered
> > > poisonous by some (in England or France?),
> > > although I don't immediately have documentation for that.
> > >
> > > Joel
> > >
> > >
> > > >JL
> > > >
> > > >On Tue, May 3, 2011 at 4:25 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: pomophobe
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > > > >
> > > > > On Tue, May 3, 2011 at 9:55 AM, Jonathan Lighter <
> > > wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>
> > > > > wrote:
> > > > > > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > > > > -----------------------
> > > > > > Sender: Â  Â  Â  American Dialect Society <
> ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > > > > > Poster: Â  Â  Â  Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
> > > > > > Subject: Â  Â  Â pomophobe
> > > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Yep. Over 10,000 raw hits.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > JL
> > > > > >
> > > > > > --
> > > > > > "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
> > > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > At first, thanks to increasing presbyopia, I read the word as
> > > > > _pornophobe_, an obvious oxymoron.
> > > > >
> > > > > But, "hates apples?" I don't get it.
> > > > >
> > > > > --
> > > > > -Wilson
> > > > > -----
> > > > > 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.
> > > > > -Mark Twain
> > > > >
> > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > > > > 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
> > >
> > > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > > 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
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> 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