[Ads-l] fluffle

[Jonathan Lighter]

295,000 raw Googlits.

JL

On Wed, Jun 28, 2023 at 6:25 PM Chris Waigl <chris at lascribe.net> wrote:

> What a rabbit hole :) ! Moonies and "northern Canada", huh?
>
> Well, there are no wild rabbits in northern Canada, so if there's anything
> to this I'd be tempted to look into how local groups talk about snowshoe
> hares and Arctic hares.
>
> Now, of course, this factoid has entered the mainstream and morphed into a
> self-fulfilling prophecy.
>
> Chris
>
> On Wed, Jun 28, 2023 at 12:32 PM Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > I was recently forwarded this language factoid:
> >
> > "A group of wild rabbits is called a 'fluffle' and I've never loved the
> > English language more."
> > https://twitter.com/mastersrex/status/1315295446584168448
> >
> > I'm always curious how these things spread, and this one sent me down a
> > rabbit-hole, appropriately enough. Here's a timeline:
> >
> > July 30, 2007: Wikipedia user Freeridr adds an unsourced claim to the
> entry
> > for "rabbit": "A group of rabbits or hares are often called a 'fluffle'
> in
> > parts of Northern Canada."
> >
> https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rabbit&diff=prev&oldid=148126554
> >
> > Apr. 29, 2008: The text of the Wikipedia "rabbit" entry (including the
> > "fluffle" line) is copied over to New World Encylopedia, a site run by
> Sun
> > Myung Moon's Unification Church.
> >
> https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/p/index.php?title=Rabbit&oldid=699288
> >
> > Feb. 17, 2010: The "fluffle" line is deleted from Wikipedia by an editor
> > ("Removed supposed naming of a group of rabbits as a 'fluffle', as I
> can't
> > verify it").
> >
> https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rabbit&diff=prev&oldid=344646745
> >
> > Sept. 29, 2013: Reddit user AaronM97 asks, "What's a fact you know that
> > will cheer me up?" Among the thousands of replies, user AmyEarhart
> submits
> > "a group of bunnies is called a fluffle."
> >
> >
> https://web.archive.org/web/20130930183135/https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1nexqv/whats_a_fact_you_know_that_will_cheer_me_up/
> > https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/1nexqv/comment/cci0rsz/
> >
> > Oct. 5, 2013: Thought Catalog publishes "30 Random, Interesting Facts
> That
> > Will Cheer You Up" based on the Reddit thread, including AmyEarhart's
> > "fluffle" submission.
> >
> >
> https://web.archive.org/web/20131020055608/https://thoughtcatalog.com/timmy-parker/2013/10/30-facts-that-will-cheer-you-up/
> >
> > Mar. 19, 2014: Buzzfeed publishes "64 Facts That Will Make You Feel
> > Incredibly Happy," which includes "a group of bunnies is called a
> fluffle."
> > The listicle links to the New World Encylopedia entry for "rabbit," which
> > retained the "fluffle" line despite its removal from Wikipedia.
> >
> >
> https://web.archive.org/web/20140319201849/https://www.buzzfeed.com/awesomer/facts-that-will-make-you-feel-incredibly-happy
> >
> > And from there it multiplied like rabbits all over the place!
> >
> > --bgz
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >
>
>
> --
> Chris Waigl . chris.waigl at gmail.com . chris at lascribe.net
> http://eggcorns.lascribe.net . http://chryss.eu
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> 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."

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