LL-L "Idiomatica" 2008.03.06 (06) [D/E]

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L O W L A N D S - L  - 06 March 2008 - Volume 06
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From: Theo Homan <theohoman at yahoo.com>
Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2008.03.06 (04) [E]

> From: Ingmar Roerdinkholder
> <ingmar.roerdinkholder at WORLDONLINE.NL>
> Subject: LL-L "Etymology" 2008.03.04 (02) [E]
>
> Hi, I'm still curious if an equivalent of NLS
"l�s"
> is used in DLS as well
> in the sense of "open". Or maybe in other
> languages/dialects? Can anyone
> here tell more about this?

Hallo,

Als ze zeiden 'de deur is los' bedoelden ze dat het
slot [de grendel] los was: dan is de deur dus open.

vr.gr.
Theo Homan

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From: Soenke Dibbern <s_dibbern at web.de>
Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2008.03.05 (02) [E]

An'n Mi., den 05. Mär.'08, hett Jonny Meibohm dit Klock 21.02 schreven:

> From: jonny <jonny.meibohm at arcor.de>
> Subject: LL-L"Language use"
>
> Beste Lowlanners,
> an LS word is the runner among young people in Germany!
> Perhaps some of the Germans among you remember the word 'Heiopei'
> (nobody knew/knows its real meaning, not to talk about the origin), born
> in the early 70ies and very much 'en vogue' among us youngsters. After a
> while even my own father used to use it...
> The latest creation I heard from two of my children (26, 27, who both
> don't speak LS at all) is _griesgnaddelig_, and my inventions on yahoo
> gave some hits. It's used for several opportunities in varying meanings.
> The meaning could be something like 'grumpy', though I haven't heard it
> in real LS before.
>A new trend????

Hi Johnny,
I would not think so. I seem to know the word (as "gniesgnaddelig") since
I was a child, at least I cannot recall having learned it as a "new" word
at some point in time. There are also "Gniesgnaddel" (grumbler,
curmudgeon) and "gniesgnaddeln" (to spread bad mood, to be ill-tempered),
both intensive forms of "gnaddeln" and "Gnaddel", respectively, with
basically the same meaning each. I've heard all of these used in Low Saxon
as well as in casual German conversation. So the word has probably just
found its way across the Elbe.

There's quite an interesting definition for "Gniesgnaddel" from Rostock in
a forum topic I found searching the internet. (in German:
http://www.scifi-forum.de/off-topic/off-topic-allgemein/36562-mundarten-3.html#post1202908
).
The word seems to have been undergone a 'slight' (and funny) narrowing in
meaning.

A nice day to all of you,
Sönke

----------

From: Soenke Dibbern <s_dibbern at web.de>
Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2008.03.05 (03) [E]

An'n Do., den 06. Mär.'08, hett Lowlands-L List dit Klock 00.40 schreven:

> From: M.-L. Lessing <marless at gmx.de>
> Subject: LL-L "Idiomatica" 2008.03.05 (02) [E]
>
> Dear Jonny,
> I have also heard the version "gnatzgniedelig". Is it related? "Eine
> Sache vergnatzgniedeln" means to spoil a thing. Where do all these
> gn-Words come from? Is gn- originally Low Saxon?
> Hartlich!
> Marlou
>
> ----------
>
> From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
> Subject: Administrativia
>
> To me, someone that does vergnatzgniedeln seems to be a "party pooper"
> in American English, or a "spoilsport" in general English, a
> Spaßverderber in German. Hence the apparent connection with gnatzig and
> vergnatzt 'cross', 'surly', 'in a huff', and Gnatz ~ Gnaatsch 'row',
> 'fight', 'argument'.  The following may be related to these: gnatterig
> 'surly', 'angry', and Gnatter 'unpleasant character', 'curmudgeon'.

Also "Gnatter-/Gnatzkopp" and "Gnegel" in the same sense.

>Interestingly, many of these semantically related words start with gn-,
> also gnegelig and gnietschig.
>
> And, yes, gn- occurs a lot in the language, in some cases corresponding
> to German kn-; e.g. [...]
> gniegeln 'to fiddel (badly)', [...]
> gniedeln 'to polish', 'to rub (vigorously)', 'to grind' [...]

To me there are only two classes of things in the world to which the term
"vergnatzgniedelt" is applicable: tools and screws - but there's plenty of
both in almost every household. Both tools (screwdrivers, wrenches) and
screws become "vergnatzgniedelt", if they are treated with too much force
for the cheap butter-and-cheese alloy they all seem to be made of.

So the stress in "vergnatzgniedeln" lies more on "gniedeln/gniegeln", at
least in my understanding and usage of the word.

Hoolt sik,
Sönke
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