THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20202, 13 September 1927, Page 7

THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.

SURVIVALS OF THE PAST. WORDS THAT HAVE NEW MEANINGS. NO ROSES ON ROSEWOODCHAMOIS LEATHER IS A SHAM. Britishers are a curious race with regard to the life of words. Wo continue by turcc of linbit and custom to use a word as it was first introduced, when, as a fact, it long ago lost its original meaning, or when, as in some cases it was originally' misaiiplicd, and is still so used to tlio present day. We speak of a country dance when we really mean a " contra dance," those who dance opposite one another; wo talk about: " briar pipes ” as if the word and anything to do with a briar or rose plant, whereas originally it belonged to the French " bruyere.” Wo speak of Indian ink and India paper, when tho former canto from China, and the latter had nothing whatever to do with India at any time. . Wo speak of rosewood as though it had any connection with the plant on which tho rose grows, and of cedar pencils, when cedar itself is not used in their manufacture. Wo call tho entrails of a sheep "cat, gut,” and usually speak of a particular kind of leather as "chamois” leather, when it never had anything to tin with tho animal of that name. Wo . all Cl broaches " black beetles ” when they are not beetles and are not black; v. n ' speak of lobsters as tishes when they are crustaceans. There is a well-known ,-tory of a writer on natural history, who spoke of a lobster as " a little red lish that runs sideways,” a statement that Cuvier, or was it Buifon, declared tq bo absolutely correct, save for throe slight errors —it was not a fish, it. was not reel, and it did not walk sideways. RICE RARER NOTHING TO DO WITH RICE. Wo talk of French beans and Frenchpolish, which have no connection with France, and of Xvidderminstor carpet and Brussels carpet, which never had anything to do with the towns from which they are named. Then we refer to “camel’s hair brushes,” which never had anything to do with the camel, and to galvanised iron, which is never galvanised, and has no connection whatever with the process. Our scaling wax contains no wax. Tho silkworms, which in tho old days children kept, arc not worms, but caterpillars. If when the children aro ill we, give them sweet spirits of nitre it .contains no nitre, while we have Chinese drawings on rice paper, which has nothing to do with rice, but is made of pii.li. Wo oat marmalade, which should bo composed of quinces (i’ortuguesc “ marinelo,” a quince), but it has no quince in it. Dutch clocks aro not Dutch at all, but German (Deutsch). German measles is not a disease that belong to the Gormans, or that, lias any connection with Germany; its rash resembles that of ordinary rabcola, and is a sort, of fictitious example of _itWg also speak of German silver, which has no connection with Germany, nor does it contain any silver, being an alloy or copper, nickel, and zinc. But when w'c talk of cousin german, wo uso a word that is allied to that of the word ” germ,” having to do with origin or stock. A MISAPPLIED WORD. 'There is perhaps no word that we so completely misapply as when wo term a person “ an idiot.”' As Dr Brewer pointed out, an idiot is simply an ordinary person who is not employed in any public office. It is not that ho is particularly incom potent of holding such a position, but ne is just one who is neither a priest nor an official, but an ordinary citizen, and from that wc got the idea that this person was incompetent, and thence tho word has gradually assumed its present meaning, so that it is applied to those born lacking intelligence.' In the present day some of ns am disposed to reverse this ancient use, and give to the person in public offices the term we now misapply. The " Jew’s harp,” upon which the boy plays, has nothing whatever to do with the Hebrew. The word is simply derived from iJm French " Jou,” a toy. A " goo.-chcrrv fool ” had nothing to do with a foolish person; it is simply “ foule mashed, the French phrase.

We speak about our ears “burning'’ when people are talking about us, anti here .vo have an exceedingly ancient trad: (ion that is still accepted. I*liny, in ins history, writes; ‘‘When our cars do tingle and glow some do talk of us in our absence.” lend word "talk” is one of the mo-i extraordinary in the English languanc, because it is tile only one that, so far’ a., Fir W. W. Fkeat was aware, wo derive direr (lv from the Lithuanian longue, lie drew special attention io this remarkabb’ survival. In the Lithuanian “tuikas” was, an iidcrprc!”V, “ luikofe ” was to inito-nroi; and there imi«l liau: been -ome. inP’r'O’irse bi’t.weeu tlic Scanoilin', ia 11 s ami Im huamau -by means of an interpreter, which brought that, word into 5~: 1 onvia-i t’lmiio do (In’ word innmi h.eurour v. .rd "iaiken” ory i, ia 1 1, and now '■tall:,” Tim ;vf, r'’ ''as ro'hing a s ni.’iiv efyi”o'o.'l- a: boid:-- stale, and io ■■fill;" - is. -’ri'iiv al.my, to in'm-nres

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