--- Judy Prince <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Do be careful, Bunnitt; Jimmy Carter may be
> monitoring the list.
>
> canoe-dling joodles
>
Hey there Jude--here's another nickname for yez,
beatle-style. Now back to yer canoodling--toot sweet--
Candice
> ---- Joanna Boulter <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
> > Er .... ahem .... don't go blaming Mark, Candice,
> the poor man knows nothing
> > about it. This is down to a long-running bc silly
> between me, Roger C, the
> > Rodent, and Judy, plus one or two others who
> occasionally feel like joining
> > in.
> >
> > I've been known as Rabbit on and off for many
> years, and it's now developed
> > to Bunnitt, usually with a double tt on the
> grounds that rabbitts can't
> > spell. (I did tell you it was silly!) I suspect
> that it got into the header
> > of this thread accidentally, when the Rodent
> responded to a post of mine.
> > The interesting thing is, the conversation's been
> running under that head
> > for a while now, and Candice seems to be the first
> person to have noticed --
> > I didn't myself, to start with, and then it seemed
> wiser to let it die the
> > death, rather then start (oh dear!) any more
> hares.
> >
> > Oh my ears and whiskers, don't tell Vile Boris!
> >
> > joanna
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "MC Ward" <[log in to unmask]>
> > To: <[log in to unmask]>
> > Sent: Saturday, September 01, 2007 4:34 PM
> > Subject: Re: Dust Bunnits
> >
> >
> > Hi Mark, what's with "Bunnits," as opposed to
> > "Bunnies, " the form I grew up with?
> >
> > Thanks--Candice
> >
> >
> >
> > --- Mark Weiss <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >
> > > Neither contact nor cognate forms, but a common
> > > ancestry.
> > >
> > >
> > > At 01:00 AM 9/1/2007, you wrote:
> > > >>Yup, the pejorative came first, before even
> the
> > > >>gender applied to, but when I look at the
> > > >>Germanic cognates
> > >
> >
>
>>(http://books.google.com/books?id=Lx8B2tyuy1MC&pg=PA444&lpg=PA444&dq=slut+etymology&source=web&ots=c_Y7kYOIv4&sig=dModOQmfb78SJs4rAOMa9GFMQgw)
> > >
> > > >>the sexual imputation appears in some
> languages
> > > >>but not in others. Meanings in the various
> > > >>languages: Icelandic, a heavy, loglike fellow;
> > > >>Swedish dialect, a slut, an idler; Norwegian,
> > > >>idler; Danish, slut; verb forms, Icel;andic
> and
> > > >>Norwegian to droop, allied to Danish loose,
> > > >>flabby. From slot-, stem of past participle of
> > > >>Norwegian sletta, to dangle, drift, idle
> about.
> > > >>Further allied to Dutch slodde, a slut, and
> the
> > > >>verb to slide.Cf. Irish slaodaire, a lazy
> person,
> > > from slaod, to slide.
> > > >
> > > >Um. Post-Skeat, we have Onions in the Oxford
> > > >Dictionary of English Etymology saying "contact
> > > >with Continental words similarly used and
> having
> > > >the same cons[onantal] framework SL..T, cannot
> > > >be proved" and the OED: " Forms having some
> > > >resemblance in sound and sense also occur in
> the
> > > >Scand. languages, as Da. slatte (? from LG.),
> > > >Norw. slott, Sw. dial. slåta, but connexion is
> very
> > > doubtful.]"
> > > >
> > > >-- which would suggest parallel or convergent
> > > >evolution rather than cognate forms, if that's
> > > >what you're suggesting above. Assuming the
> word
> > > >doesn't come into use much before it's first
> > > >recorded, the end of the 14thC is a bit late
> for
> > > >an unidentified borrowing from another
> > > >continental language. By then, when words are
> > > >borrowed [I think], they tend initially to look
> > > >very much like their form in the language they
> > > >are borrowed from. (Which contention would be
> a
> > > >bit stronger if I could think of an example.)
> > > >
> > > >I'm drawn towards the idea that "slut" comes in
> > > >because there's a strong phonaesthetic
> framework
> > > >around the general semantic area of glub and
> > > >grot, similar words just begging to be added
> > > >to. I haven't checked the date origins of the
> > > following, but consider:
> > > >
> > > > slut / slattern / sloven
> > > >
> > > > slug / (slow) / sloth
> > > >
> > > > sot
> > > >
> > > > slubber / slobber
> > > >
> > > >-- given that weight of phonaesthetic
> > > >negativity, sluts virtually have to be
> sluttish,
> > > nah?
> > > >
> > > >>I'm assuming that the various idle, slovenly
> > > >>meanings are earlier, and that by a process of
> > > >>convergence the sexual and the social accreted
> to
> > > the word.
> > > >
> > > >I'm inclined to agree, but the 50 year range in
> > > >the OED is a narrow one, within the margin of
> > > >error of when the word appears vs. when it's
> > > >first recorded in print. Also, I simply picked
> > > >up the definitions the OED gives without
> > > >checking them against the citations themselves
> > > >-- too much trouble at this time of night --
> > > >which is sloppy of me, given past
> > > >experience. But LEME did seem to concur --
> > > >Florio is more colourful (as ever) in his range
> > > >of synonyms for the word, but he's not
> untypical
> > > >of all the writers who "define" it between
> > > 1550-1700.
> > > >
> > > >>Seems to me too reasonable to be a
> > > >>frseh-hatched folk etymology of my own, but
> I'm
> > > >>aware that the best available is far short of
> > > proof.
> > > >
> > > >Yup.
> > > >
> > > >Back to the Spital House. I'm beginning to get
> > > >to *like that bloody poem, which is worrying.
> > > >
> > > >Ulp ...
> > > >
> > > >Robin
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
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>
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