LL-L: "Names" LOWLANDS-L, 28.JAN.2000 (03) [D/E]

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 L O W L A N D S - L * 28.JAN.2000 (03) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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From: kdcaldw at interserv.com
Subject: Names

>From: john feather [johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk]
>Subject: Names
>
>I'm still a bit puzzled by naming "for" and "after". I looked in "Made in
>America" by Bill Bryson (born Iowa, long-term resident of Yorkshire,
>England). In a chapter on the naming of American towns and geographical
>features he uses both forms, though "for" more frequently.
>
>>From my point of view "for" seems to be the much more common form in
>American TV and films, though it's possible that it stands out more because
>(to the very best of my knowledge) it is not used in Britain, and various
>British dictionaries describe the usage as "North American". If it is a
>"local" form where is it in the majority? Does anyone out there know from
>direct experience or have access to a dialect dictionary which would throw
>light on this?
>
>John Feather johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk

The way I use these (I'm an American), only people can be named after someone,

while places and objects are named for people or other places.  For example,
New
York is named for York, England, while a baby might be named after his
grandfather.  But I can understand either usage in either context.

I'm also reminded of the following joke:

Mother: Be respectful of your grandmother. After all, she was named after
Martha
Washington.

Little boy:  Yeah, and not too long after!

Kevin Caldwell

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From: john feather [johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk]
Subject: Names

Jan De Craemere wrote:

>The 'dun' in Dunkerque has another source: Dunkerque is the French adaption
of flemisch 'Duinkerke' which means church in the dunes.<

But are "dune" and "dun" related? According to Chambers Etymological
Dictionary and Duden Herkunftswörterbuch Celtic "dun" is the origin of the
whole family of words "dune", "down", "town", "Zaun", D. "tuin", etc. The
sense seems to have developed from hill -> fortified hill -> fort ->
walled/enclosed place -> enclosing device.

De Vries disagrees. He sees no connexion between "duin" and "tuin". He says
of "duin":

"Opmerkelijk is dat het woord op een beperkt taalgebied voorkomt. Wil men
het woord uit het  germaans verklaren, dan kan men aan een indogermaans
wortel *dhû "schudden" denken, met een grondbetekenis van "opstuivend
duinzand".

By "indogermaans" he means "Indo-European". I remember that another
Lowlander has a copy of the longer version of De Vries. Does that make any
of this any clearer?

John Feather johnfeather at sceptic1.freeserve.co.uk

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