on 9/6/02 11:15 AM, david.bircumshaw at [log in to unmask] wrote:
>> Right you are (I'll ignore that last part). But the citations for gay are
> so few and so far before the word came into general use that I'd guess it
> is in fact an independent coinage. I remember feeling at the time that a
> perfectly good word had been appropriated.
> Similarly "queer." It's hard to imagine Richard Hammerstein's lyric from
> Carousel (50s, I think) beginning "you're a queer one, Julie Jordan" not
> getting snickers now<
>
> I think I'd side with Mark on this, independent coinage feels 'right' to me.
'Gay', I thought, went back at least to 19th century as some kind of
Victorian sexual slang (but I will check).
'Queer' has been here for quite a while as well - at least in this country.
You could always raise a laugh by saying you were 'feeling a little queer'.
Cheers,
Jill
_________________________________
Jill Jones
50 Ruby Street
Marrickville NSW 2204
AUSTRALIA
[log in to unmask]
http://homepages.ihug.com.au/~jpjones
|