LL-L "Etymology" 2007.07.22 (01) [E]

[Lowlands-L List]

L O W L A N D S - L  -  22 July 2007 - Volume 01

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From: "M.-L. Lessing" <marless at gmx.de>
Subject: LL-L "Etymology" 2007.07.21 (01) [E/V]

The "byword"-thing:  Kevin wrote:

I believe that a person (or nation) can be referred to as a byword. The
places where "byword" is used in the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible
are:...
Here are many examples for a person's name or a nation being a byword for
negative things. *Is *"byword" negative? "Proverb", "astonishment",
"song" and the other words that go along with it are originally non-valuing
words. And so is "Beispiel", "Bispill" in German and Nedderdüütsch. Can
anybody be a byword for something good?

Marlou

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From: jonny <jonny.meibohm at arcor.de>
Subject: LL-L "Etymology" 2007.07.21 (01) [E/V]

Beste Ron,

you wrote:

> Jonny, whatever the reason may be (which could be confusion in ancient
times), Spill [spI.l] and Spęęl (Spääl) [spe:l] in the sense of 'play' > are
dialectically distributed in Low Saxon; i.e., some dialects use one and
other dialects use the other.  So it isn't a matter of right or wrong >
unless you focus on one dialect only.

Yes, and I fully agree with you.

But, as I didn't write clear enough, in our dialect we normally pronounce
it *'Speel',* and so we do in *''_Speel_warks', 'Kinner_speel_', 'Bii_speel_
*', but as an exception from the rule older natives tend to say *
'Kar_spill_'* or even *'Kar_spell_*' with that *short* vowel. That's the
matter pricking up my ears- possibly here we have a hint for the different
roots of *'spilon'* - 'to play'  vs *'spellon'* - to tell  which
completely(?) got lost in Standard German.

Perhaps it is sheer coincidence, but a remarkable one.

Have a nice sunday!

Jonny Meibohm
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