Folk etymology definition is the transformation of words so as to give them an apparent relationship to other betterknown or betterunderstood words as in the change of spanish cucaracha to english cockroach. Whether youre a student, an educator, or a lifelong learner, can put you on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement. The online etymology dictionary is the internets goto source for quick and reliable accounts of the origin and history of english words, phrases, and idioms. Trasks dictionary of historical and comparative linguistics or the entry p 142 in the concise oxford dictionary of linguistics or folk etymology in winfred lehmanns historical linguistics. Etymological dictionary of latin and the other italic. The outlier dictionary of chinese characters, when its finally ready, will be a userfriendly reference about the etymology of chinese characters, together with mnemonics that can help learning them. Words from new world languages merriamwebsters spell it. For example, the etymology of etymology can be traced through old english and latin to the greek roots etymo, meaning true, and logos, meaning word. Folketymology synonyms, folketymology pronunciation, folketymology translation, english dictionary definition of folketymology. But such discussions ought to be well grounded because linguistic resources are widely available to serve as guides. The site has become a favorite resource of teachers of reading, spelling, and english as a second language.
A dictionary of verbal corruptions or words perverted in form or meaning, by false derivation or mistaken analogy abram smythe palmer g. Breaking the grounds for an etymological dictionary of. Similarly aquifolium to older acruifoliusm, see deer. Folk etymology definition, a modification of a linguistic form according either to a falsely assumed etymology, as welsh rarebit from welsh rabbit, or to a historically irrelevant analogy, as bridegroom from bridegome.
The oxford dictionary of english etymology book pdf download. We use cookies to enhance your experience on our website. As the main purpose of this dictionary is to serve as a reference. The discipline that analyses the origin, formation, and development of the word is defined as etymology. We use cookies to enhance your experience on our website, including to provide targeted advertising and track usage. The process of altering otherwise incomprehensible words, in order to give them a semblance of meaning, is called folk, or popular, etymology. Feb 17, 2020 folk etymology countable and uncountable, plural folk etymologies a misunderstanding of the etymology of a word appealing to the unlearned mind.
A word or phrase is typically considered a folk etymology only if it has changed from its original borrowed form as a result of the reinterpreted etymology. Etymology investigates and documents the lives mainly the origins of words. Folk etymology from english folk and greek etymologia. If parts of a native word sounded familiar, they were often spelled by the settlers in a familiar way, as in woodchuck. Change in the form of a word or phrase resulting from a mistaken assumption about its composition or meaning, as in shamefaced for earlier shamfast. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the cambridge dictionary editors or of cambridge university press or its licensors. By continuing to use our website, you are agreeing to our use of cookies. Folk etymology definition in the cambridge english dictionary. The pointed beak of a sturgeon andor its elongated form make a derivation. My complaint is that the concept of popular or folketymology is rarely. Folk etymology as a linguistic phenomenon castillo, anastasia on. Etymological curiosity in the west goes back to both the pagan greeks. Folk etymology meaning in the cambridge english dictionary. Etymology ythe e a p ob e o ety o og ca esea c s t e act main problem of etymological research is the fact that the original meaning of a lexeme is unknowable.
However, it would not have developed into such an interesting discipline without the linguistic phenomenon of folk etymology. See for example, the entry folk etymology in the routledge dictionary of language and linguistics or the entry for folk etymology in r. Click download or read online button to get etymology book now. If a phonetically similar word with a similar meaning can be found, well and good. A product of ignorance, it nevertheless should not be underestimated as a factor of language history, for many familiar words owe their form to it. A guide to the science and process of etymology for the layperson explains how the origins and history of hundreds of words are determined, discussing such topics as folk etymology, changes of meaning in language history, borrowed words, and the methods of etymology. Folk etymology or reanalysis sometimes called popular etymology, analogical reformation, or etymological reinterpretation is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more familiar one. The meaning of the modified word is less significant in folk etymologies. The great thing about it is that it is going to be based on modern etymology scholarship, in contrast to many other resources that are based. Words that entered english from new world languages were prime candidates for this process. Muskrat, helpmate, and 6 more folk etymologies merriam.
David saith the rich folk that embraceden and oieden all hir herte to treasour of. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more. A folk etymology is an attempt to retroactively explain where a word comes from. Folk etymology, pseudo etymology, or reanalysis is change in the word or phrase over time resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by the more familiar one. Where to look for history and etymology of chinese.
Etymology ylexicologygy p gy relies on information derived from mor phology, phonology, semantics, and etymology. Folk etymology definition and meaning collins dictionary. A concise etymological dictionary of the english language. Studies in etymology pdf studies in etymology presents classical influences on english simply and clearly. In a special sense, it is intended to denote the corruption which words undergo, owing either to false ideas about their derivation, or to a mistaken.
Full text of folk etymology a dictionary internet archive. Join us on an excursion into the world of eight common words delightfully convoluted backstories. Folk etymology refers to a change in the form or pronunciation of a word resulting from a mistaken assumption about its composition or meaning. A small number of words change their shape in fairly obvious ways due to processes like. Every word in every language has a unique origin and history.
Folk etymology definition of folk etymology by merriam. Class i, which is the more common type of folketymology, can if needed also be. This gravitational pull toward a familiar or logical spelling or sound is called folk etymology. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. Folk etymologies are based on misperceptions of foreign words as native words. The findings of this study showed that there are some processes in creating english new words, such as a affixation, b folk etymology, c compounding, d abbreviation, e acronyms, f borrowing.
Popular notions of etymology are often quite colorfuland quite wrong. Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples log in dictionary. Subscribe to americas largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced searchad free. Saxon dictionary for the use of students by john r. This will enable international users, from brazil to france, from argentina to italy, from mexico to angola, to consult demgol by any internet device such as. Folk etymology is a linguistic phenomenon whereby borrowed or archaic phrases are reinterpreted according to analogy with other comon words or phrases in the language. Folk etymology alphadictionary free english online dictionary. The underlying principle of folk etymology is that speakers of a language expect all the wordsand every part of a wordin their language to be legitimate english words or affixes suffix or prefix. Indeed, word origins are a common subject of conversation in englishspeaking countries.
The meaning often changes, and if we go back looking at a worda words history, we could come to an era of which we s. An etymological dictionary of arabic peyman mikaili iranian academy of sciences, teheran, ir. Typically this happens either to unanalyzable foreign words or to compounds where the word underlying one part of the compound becomes obsolete. Oxford english dictionary online, folk etymology, usually, the popular perversion of the form of words in order to render it apparently significant routledge dictionary of language and linguistics folk etymology r. Etymological dictionary of greek mythology names of gods. It is professional enough to satisfy academic standards, but accessible enough to be used by anyone.
I propose that folk etymology is really just a mechanism for using language creatively and humorously and at its roots has very little to do with etymology. By folketymology is meant the influence exercised upon words, both as to their form and meaning, by the popular use and misuse of them. It is also a combination of word analysis and the study of literary text across language and time. Folk etymology definition is the transformation of words so as to give them an apparent relationship to other betterknown or betterunderstood words as in the change of. From middle high german volk, from old high german folk, from protowest germanic folk, from protogermanic fulka people, tribe. In linguistic change caused by folk etymology, the form of the word changes so that it better matches its popular rationalisation. The second part of the dictionary is arranged alphabetically according to english key words. Trask, dictionary of historical and comparative linguistics, folk etymology. Folk etymology is based on the sound of the placename and is therefore similar to phonetic transfer. Folk definition and meaning collins english dictionary. Folk etymology as a linguistic phenomenon publish your. Folk etymology occurs when the sounds of one language will not easily convert to the sounds of the second language, as in phonetic transfer. The oxford dictionary of english etymology also available for read online in mobile and kind. Thus belfry, the part of a tower in which bells are hung, comes from medieval latin berfredus a tower, not from the english word bell.
Oxford english dictionary online, folketymology, usually, the popular perversion of the form of words in order to render it apparently significant routledge dictionary of language and linguistics folk etymology r. Classical etymology, the etymological studies suggested in ar. The form or the meaning of an archaic, foreign, or otherwise unfamiliar word. Mar 19, 2020 in folk etymology, speakers af a language assume the etymology of a word or phrase by comparing it to similarsounding words or phrases that already exist in the language. Download the oxford dictionary of english etymology ebook in pdf, epub, mobi. Folk etymology and neighbouring categoriesprocesses. Folk etymology or reanalysis sometimes called pseudoetymology, popular etymology, analogical reformation, or etymological reinterpretation is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more familiar one. This supposition is triggered by some associations of form or meaning between the changing word, unfamiliar to the speakers. Muskrat is also probably a result of folk etymology. In a special sense, it is intended to denote the corruption which words undergo, owing either to false ideas about their derivation, or to a mistaken analogy with other words to which they are supposed to be related. Folk etymology is a process that adapts unknown words or parts of words to known ones in certain languages, thus integrating them into the lexical system and making them more transparent. Unanalyzable borrowings from foreign languages, like asparagus, or old compounds such as samblind which have lost air iconic motivation since one or more of the morphemes making am up, like sam, which meant semi, has.
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