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Edward Hennessey
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 Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 1:29 am Post subject: Etymological Miscellany |
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We had discussion within memory about the source of heroin in the
German
base for "hero". The connection of the two, according to the latest-
found conjecture,
is that dilutions of the drug inspired the user with delusions of
heroism.
Plodding through some Dutch led to the discovery that Vader is a word
for
father, which gives amusing valence to the theatrical name of the sire
of Luke Skywalker in a certain sci-fi epic.
From a twisty evolution the word "hoary" arose, meaning "white" and
serving
as an English derision of age. From a similar origin Dutch and German
contrarily worked out terms of respect, mijnheer and herr. Should I
now hear
some wit say "He is hard of herring", this knowledge will deprive me
of some
of the merriment intended.
Next time your typing fingers want to interchange "wholly" for "holy",
forgive
them. Both are thought to stem from a distant German root meaning
"inviolate or unimpaired". Ergo to wit, this explains divorces. Some
pairings
are unholy. And the newest nomination for the forbidden fruit is....
"Dollar" derives from "taler". Any numismatist sleeping for the last
few years desiring to exchange these coins at face value will be
kindly
accommodated.
Credit for much substance in the above goes to "The Dictionary of
Word
Origins" by John Ayto.
Hey, TV, you know the term for that little perforated strip of paper
left after
taking stamps out of a block? In Maltese?
Regards,
Edward Hennessey |
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Tony Vella
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| Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 4:54 pm Post subject: Re: Etymological Miscellany |
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"Edward Hennessey" <halozzyzxhalo@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:f68e675c-0bc6-42aa-94ae-44ffa4dbdb31@m44g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
<big snip>
[quote]
Hey, TV, you know the term for that little perforated strip of paper
left after
taking stamps out of a block? In Maltese?
[/quote]
Stamp collectors call it selvage (selvedge) , ægkant, salbande, Webkante,
cimosa, margem, orillo.
When I was a kid, father, also a stamp-collector, always called it
"iz-zejjet" in Maltese which means simply "the extra". Some Maltese stamps
of the 50s had a control number on the selvedge which father always referred
to as "in-numru ta' kontol fuq iz-zejjet". I>m sure there is a more
technical word by now but I certainly don>t know it.
--
Tony Vella
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
http://www.amedialuz.ca/ |
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Edward Hennessey
Guest
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| Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 7:09 pm Post subject: Re: Etymological Miscellany |
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On Jul 23, 4:54 am, "Tony Vella" <tony.ve...@rogers.com> wrote:
[quote]"Edward Hennessey" <halozzyzxh...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:f68e675c-0bc6-42aa-94ae-44ffa4dbdb31@m44g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
big snip
Hey, TV, you know the term for that little perforated strip of paper
left after
taking stamps out of a block? In Maltese?
Stamp collectors call it selvage (selvedge) , ægkant, salbande, Webkante,
cimosa, margem, orillo.
When I was a kid, father, also a stamp-collector, always called it
"iz-zejjet" in Maltese which means simply "the extra". Some Maltese stamps
of the 50s had a control number on the selvedge which father always referred
to as "in-numru ta' kontol fuq iz-zejjet". I>m sure there is a more
technical word by now but I certainly don>t know it.
--
Tony Vella
Ottawa, Ontario, Canadahttp://www.amedialuz.ca/
[/quote]
TV:
Nifty. I knew you were a shoe-in for the respuesta. "Selvage" was
probably
what resided deep in the cortex and close enough to "salvage" to spur
thought.
The Maltese, I>m afraid, will have to be reserved for understanding
company
not outfit with a perching punster.
Here>s an amusing new slang term from the Mideast describing
aficionados of
the genre bannered by Iron Maiden and Slayer: "metalalien". That
might work in English too....
If you are entertaining alternatives to your ensconcement on the PP,
you
might want to do an image search on San Miguel de Allende in Mexico.
Tell the lady that she can wake every morning to a soft aubade by a
band of sonorous jovenes for a mere few Vera Cruz amethysts.
Regards,
Edward Hennessey |
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