Pre-Archaic Industrial Jargon

[Wilson Gray]

"Brotherhood of Teamsters, Stablemen, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen,
Draymen, and Helpers of America," a former name of the Teamsters
Union, yields

_teamsters  stablemen  draymen_

of which, AFAIK, only _teamsters_ remains, used capitalized as
_Teamsters_, and usually referring only to members of the Teamsters
Union.

--
-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




On Wed, Mar 7, 2012 at 1:39 PM, Martin Kaminer <martin.kaminer 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  Martin Kaminer <martin.kaminer at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject: Â  Â  Â Pre-Archaic Industrial Jargon
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> I'm wondering about the way in which words no longer in common usage
> appear as blue-collar occupational titles. Â This morning I was stuck
> in traffic between trucks belonging to a 'dismantler' and a
> 'purveyor', each an intriguing contrast between the sesquipedalian and
> the quotidian. Â I'm thinking also of 'demurrage charges' for rented
> mechanical equipment (to say nothing of bills of lading) and other
> ways in which the pace of language change mirrors the pace of
> technological change, or lack thereof. Â Curious if there are other
> examples which support or disprove. Â I can only imagine what folks
> will be saying about the 'quaint' fiber optic installation vans
> decades hence.
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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