Articles In This Issue
S ERVING S OUTH T EXAS AND S URROUNDING A REAS F OR O VER 37 Y EARS Vol.XXXIX, No. 6
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Page 1: Pat Farrell Page 3: SABOR Page 7: The Way I See It Featuring: Cathey Meyer Page 10: Guest Column Featuring: Brad Smilgin Page 17: NARPM Article Featuring: Brenda Davila Page 15: WCR Article Featuring: Renae Pretty Page 23: News Flash
June 2021
Where Did That Originate? Pat Farrell / Contributing Writer
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We all grow up learning and using expressions and phrases that were either popular during our formative years or came from hearing our parents use them or maybe they came from our friends, then or even now. Regardless of their source we probably never thought about where the phrases got started but some expressions may just have quite an interesting historical background. Take, for example, the phrase “He got off Scott free.” Many believe that the phrase originated with Dred Scott, a Virginia slave, who sued for his freedom in all judicial courts possible, including the U. S. Supreme Court, but lost in all cases, yet he was eventually freed by his owners. It could then make sense that Scott was the source of the phrase. However, many other people, being aware of how frugal those from Scotland can be, believe it makes sense that the phrase “Scot free” refers to how the Scots are able, at times, to get away “Scot free,” when it comes to paying for some things. But it has been shown the phrase was actually in use as far back as the 10th century (very much ahead of Dred Scott’s time) when the word “scot,” an English language derivation of the Scandinavian word “skat,” which referred to any kind of tax, so that when one did not pay their taxes they “got off scot free.” Note the three spellings: Scott, Scot
and scot, but they all mean the same thing. Those who have ever watched old episodes of the comedy team, Laurel and Hardy, may remember that Stan Laurel was the inept one, always getting the duo into some predicament or ‘muddle,’ and Oliver Hardy would always say things like,“Now that’s a ‘fine, ‘pretty’ or ‘nice’ kettle of fish you’ve gotten me into!” It is thought that the kettle in ‘kettle of fish” may have come from England and refers to either the pan that was used to poach fish or to a “kiddle of fish” where the old word “kiddle” (later corrupted to “kettle”) referred to the baskets or nets in which fish were caught. Mention of the word “kiddle” dates back to the Magna Carta in 1215, whereas the earliest recorded use of "a pretty kettle of fish" occurs in Henry Fielding’s 1742 edition of The History of the Adventures of Joseph Andrews, followed later by his use of "a rare kettle of fish" in The History of Tom Jones (1749). In any event the meaning of all these “kettle of fish” expressions just refer to an awkward or difficult predicament. Ever heard a policeman referred to as a “cop?”There are some general theories for why the police are called Cops, one of which is because it is an acronym for Constabulary of Police or for the Constable on Patrol, however, there is little to actually document that theory. The old Anglo-Saxon word “cop” was a verb meaning to catch, capture or grab and was derived from the noun “cop,” a word prevalent in the 12th century, and thought to be related to the Dutch word “kapen” which has the same meaning. It was in 1844 that some sources document the use of the verb “cop” to mean arrest from which it then referred to a “cop” as a law officer. There are also some who believe the term “copper” is in use because the police badges and uniform buttons are made from copper, however they are usually made from brass. The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) documents that the first use of the term “copper” for police was in London in 1846 and most sources agree that the shortened form “cop” was in use by 1859. Ever had that euphoric feeling that everything is right in the world but most especially in your world? If so, you could
be described as being “on cloud nine.” But why nine – why not cloud eight or cloud ten? Even cloud seven might have been considered more appropriate as it fits right in with the idea of being in “Seventh Heaven.” Some sources believe nine was chosen because it is a “mystical number,” meaning that there are a limitless number of human and global things that can be reduced to nine. I am not sure who had the time to figure all this out, but the human birth gestation period is nine months, human mean respiration is 18/min., heartbeat is 72/min. and the average heart beats 4,320/hr., respirations 1080/hr. and 25,920 respirations/day with all numbers being divisible by nine. But wait, there’s more… there are 360o in a circle, it was tradition for the Romans to bury their dead on the ninth day of death, Catholic novenas last nine nights and the bells ring 3+3+3 times at the consecration during the Mass. And then there is the game of baseball where there are nine players, playing for nine innings on a field where the bases are 90 feet apart. When you were younger and not getting your homework done or your room cleaned, did your folks ever tell you to “quit dilly-dallying?”The key word form in the phrase is “dally,” thought to have come from the Old French verb “dalier” which, according to the OED, had its earliest use in the verb form in 1741 in Richardson’s, Pamela,“What you do, sir, do: don't stand dilly-dallying!” but as a noun there was a quotation in 1610,“Such dilly-dally is fitter for heathens that know not God.” It is also interesting to note that the original meaning of ”dalien” in the early 14th century was “to speak seriously or commune” but by later that century had changed to “play, sport, frolic or flirt” and by the 1530s had a general meaning of “to waste time.” Dilly-dally is a good example of the linguistic process of “reduplication” where the base word is either repeated or changed slightly and usually rhymes, ex. hocus-pocus, walkietalkie or flim-flam, along with general baby-talk as in tum-tum and ga-ga. And then there are the phrases “shiver me timbers” and “feeling under the weather,” both good examples of sailor speak. The word “shiver” was used
as far back as the 16th century and described the shattering and splintering of wood (timber) on land as the result of an earthquake but by 1795 was being used to emphasize the truth of what one was saying as in “may my ship’s timber be shivered if what I say is not the truth.”The meaning later became a phrase expressing surprise as in “well, shiver my timbers, that was a good one.” It was certainly a favorite for Long John Silver in Treasure Island. Today we understand when one says,“I am feeling under the weather” they mean they feel ill. On a ship, the rail that is “up wind,” i.e., facing into the wind, is called the “weather rail,” directly below which was usually the spot that was rocking the least and therefore the best place to rest. In his 1840 book, Two Years Before the Mast, Richard Henry Dana, Jr. records, “we stowed ourselves away upon the rigging under the weather rail ………… …. And we were glad to get this rest.” Along with phrases there are a number of words that have interesting origins and different meanings as opposed to how they are used today. Ever thought that you were a diehard fan of someone or something? Well, you need to think about the origin of the word “diehard” as it once was used to describe how one chose to die when they were being hanged – once the noose was applied one could ask that their legs be pulled to expedite death or they could choose to just wait until the noose created a lack of air flow to the brain and thus they would “die hard!” And we all use the word “goodbye,” probably everyday, without ever thinking of or even knowing its origin. During the 16th century people would politely end their letters with “God be with you,” until someone decided that was too long and shortened it to “god b w ye.” Eventually, probably because of all the other greetings like good day and good afternoon,“God” was replaced by “good” and it became “goodbye.” Or did you know that the words merry, bra and pretzel are all derived from the same source? It can be very interesting to see how many words now common to our language today had some very unusual beginnings. But that is a subject for another day!