tlhIngan-Hol Archive: Sun Feb 21 23:31:23 1999
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Re: jebberwa'qay
- From: [email protected]
- Subject: Re: jebberwa'qay
- Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 02:31:05 EST
In a message dated 2/19/1999 5:32:44 PM US Mountain Standard Time,
[email protected] writes:
<< Lewis Carroll contrived "chortle" to fit into a poem made substantially of
near-nonsense words that sound like they mean something. He was playing
with the poetry of what he called "portmanteau words". He was not trying
to add to the English language a word it lacked. He most definitely was not
trying to express a specific concept clearly. >>
Ah, but he succeeded too well. Speakers of English now use "chortle" and
"jabberwocky." Even Webster's dictionary publishers gave in and included
"ain't."
Someday you and I will talk about how languages develop.
peHruS