Doubling, Lengthening (Re: Another example of doubling....)

[Liland Brajant ROS']

>>>I think pishpish and pish are not connected. "pishpish" is derived
>from the
>>>French expression to call / lure a cat from somewhere (like sayings
>are very
>>>widespread: the comparable German expression would be "mietzmietz"
>>>['mi:tsmi:ts]).  "pish" is from "fish" of course.

Might be safer to say "*a* French or *a* German expression..." rather
than "*the*..."  In my idiolect of English, "hIR 'kIti'kIti'kIti" is the
stereotypical utterance, though I usually call my *own* cats by *name* :
"'Iz@'bEl" etc.  But I have known people who said (in all seriousness)
"hI@ pUspUspUs".  I think they're usually not locals.  Reminds me of my
exwife, a native speaker of Fiji Hindi, who once actually told a
gathering of people, in ignorant innocence, that she had to get home so she
could "play with my pussy".  Anyhow, this is the sort of phrase that
seems to me to be just tailor-made for dialectal variation.

I also sometimes call cats, especially if they are quite close, with a
prolonged, rising-toned tongue-trill.

As far as the "siah" prolongation bit goes, quite a few of the old
glossarists mention "ahnkuttie" as referring to farther and farther in
the past the longer one prolongs the "ahn". (anqati > aanqati > aaaaaanqati)

lilend

--
Liland Brajant Ros' * UEA-D, Seatlo Usono * FD Baptismo, AA, US-lit-ro
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