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Subject:Re: Latin vs. Germanic From:Dave Whelan <agi259 -at- FREENET -dot- MB -dot- CA> Date:Thu, 31 Jul 1997 18:45:13 -0500
Lisa Miller wrote:
>I remember reading once that when someone wants to sound "schooled" they
>use Latin words such as "manual." By contrast, a person trying to speak
>more commonly would choose "book." Alexia's argument sounds similar. I
>would equate "click" with the more German-gutteral pronunciations and
>choose ("select" doesn't really work in my example, I know) with the softer
>Latin.
>
Another take on this is that after the Roman conquest, and later the Norman,
Latin became the language of the leisured classes. The peasants who did all
the work used Anglo-Saxon and other Germanic languages; the only ones who
knew Latin were the rich and powerful from the aristocracy and church. The
big wheels didn't have to do any work so Latin words lost their vibrancy to
describe active work.
Today, if you seek active, hardworking English words, you often find that
they are Germanic in origin. Click is active and direct - it tells you to
get on with it; whereas select is less active and less direct - it allows
you more lattitude and suggests you think about it first before you make a
decision.
If there is a rule of thumb in this it is probably to use Germanic words for
active commands when you want someone to do something, Latin when you need
to be more circumspect and thoughtful. For procedural descriptions, I like
click.
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