OUR MOTHER TONGUE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22250, 26 October 1935, Page 1 (Supplement)

OUR MOTHER TONGUE

BY PROFESSOR ARNOJ7D WALL

RANDOM NOTES—IX.

Professor Wall will bo Bind to answer queries on etymology, pronunciation find kindred mutters, if addressed through the editor of tho Hkhald. Correspondents who would likfl queries answered privately should enclose stamped envelope. " Debris." Pronounced " debrce," with the stress on tho first syllable. The word is hardly Anglicised yet and probably never will he, as its form is so peculiarly French. " Privacy." Both the long i as in "private" and tho short as in "privet" arc permitted by authorities, though the long sound is reckoned more correct.

" Robot." This is sounded " rowbott," with long o in the first syllable, as in " robe." This seems likely to remain tho standard pronunciation as long as the word continues in use. It is a mistake to keep tho t silent as if it wore French. " Grosvenor." Pronounced ' GlO- - " in two syllables. "Autogyro." Apparently the g must be hard in this recent word, as it is in " gyroscope " and " gyrostat," as in " gyrate " aiid " gyromangy." "Anaesthetist." I was surprised to learn from a correspondent that this word is sometimes pronounced in hospitals without the s betoro tho tli. Ihe s must, of course, be sounded, as in "aesthetic" and the other words of the group from tho Greek " aisthesis," " perception." " Lingerie.'' lam asked about this, but wonder if it is ever pronounced at all. At any rate it is not in tho male vocabulary. If it had been adopted long ago it would now be Anglicised land pronounced like "gingery"; but as it is, if it must bo used in speech, it must either bo straight-out French, with the vowel nasalised and tho n not otherwise sounded (which is only possible for speakers of French), or the usual compromise which would bo like "tangerine" without the -no. As for me, I. shall keep silent on the subject. " Controversy." This is correctly stressed on the first and third syllables, like " contradiction." One occasionally hears it stressed 011 tho -trov-, which is quite wrong. The old pronunciation is indicated by Shakespeare's line: "And stemming it with hearts of controversy," where the rhythm requires the stressing of first and third. " Deficit." Tho stress must bo on the first syllable, but this syllable is allowed by authority to be either long as in " detail" or short as in " delicate "; the long sound is considered the bettor. On no account should tho stress be on " lie.'' " Laboratory." Authorities allow both the current pronunciations, with the stress on either the first or the second syllable. Strictly the stress should be on the first, but this is so awkward, with four unstressed syllables to follow, that the other cannot well bo banned. " Veterinary " is a parallel case, and there is every excuse for the popular shortening of these words to "lab" and " vet." " Decadent " This ought to be stressed upon the first syllable, like "delicate," and I should not myself allow tho stress on tho -cad- to be correct, though one authority at least seems to admit it. Little Histories " Riding," for an administrative division. The fortune of this word seems to be unique. It is well known to stand for the old word " thriding," a third part. As it was usually [ireceded by North, South, East or West, all of which happen to end in t or th, the th of "thriding" was displaced; it is easy to see how, e.g., Norththriding became North Riding. The poor old word lost its head by sheer ill-luck. " Always." A correspondent seems to bo puzzled by this familiar word whose very familiarity masks the peculiarity of its history. It does not literally mean "at all times' 1 but " all along the way, or road." The original form, now archaic, was " alway," and the s is not really a plural sign but a genitive. In " singing all tho way," we can sco how easily the sense passes, " inchin' along," as the song says, from "all along the road" to " all the time." " Roslyn " and " Rosyth." " Ros " in Gaelic means " rose," the flower, and tho word for promontory or peninsula has the same form. Both of these appear in names. In Roslyn it is most probably th*?. flower; in Rosyth the promontory. " Lynn " in the Celtic languages is a waterfall, and -ytli in Rosyth is for " hithe," the AngloSaxon word for "haven" or " landingplaco." Various Idioms and Usages " Data " as a singular. This mistake is very common and almost excusable, since only those who know Latin grammar can he fully aware of the fact that " data," for " things given," is the neuter plural of a participle. Tho English language is not the exclusive property of people who know Latin, and it is a great pity that it includes so many words like this. In tho case of " stamina," which is tho plural of "stamen" (of a flower) used in a very special figurative sense, it is too late t<r protest; " stamina " in English is singular and must remain so. If " datum," the singular form, were in common use and not inerely a technical term known to few, the error in number would not, have arisen. The preposition at the end of tho sentence I have been asked about this old " rule," but have 110 space to deal fully with it. It should never have been a rule or instruction at all, as tho usage is old, natural and innocent. It is inflocd (or was) a pedantic attempt to force the national English idiom, which is free and flexible, into the rigid frame of Latin syntax. Fowler's article 011 it in his " Modern English Usage " is excellent. " Ho asked would I come," for " ho asked if (or whether) I would come." This form of expression is not idiomatic English. Apparently it is an " Irishism," but as an English usage it is simply lazy. Some Surnames 1 have beer, asked for explanations of the following: Hallett: Diminutive of Hal for Henry, to ho, compared with Collett, from Nicholas; Gillett, from Gilbert. Giles, or William (Guillaume). Lainehbury. I am very doubtful aboyt this name. Tho most probable origin for Lainch seem to be Linch or Lynch, the Anglo-Saxon word for " hill " which remains, in its Northern form, in tho golf " links," for sandhills. The oldest spelling, which is not of course available, would bo the only certain guide in such a case. There are no English words in " ainch." Tho second syllable, "-bury," means " town " and the name is evidently a place-name. Hardcastle. This is also a problem. It is, of course, the name of a particular fortress. Hard- may be the common adjective and the name would mean a very strong fortress, difficult to take; or else it took its name from the owner, Hard, Hardy (strong or brave). It is also quite probable that Hard is for Howard, Haward, etc., which stand for Hereward, the famous Anglo-Saxon name meaning " leader of an army." Harden, about which I am also asked, is for Hawarden (Cheshire), thus pronounced and meaning the "dene" or "valley" of Haward.