Date: Thu, 4 Mar 2004 08:31:04 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Leo Weigant Subject: Re: Wigeon -v- Widgeon Redux Again Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="=__PartC8E9C288.0__=" This is a multi-part message in MIME format... --=__PartC8E9C288.0__= Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Disposition: inline Well, having followed this whole discussion with a somewhat proprietary int= erest, I wanted to express my great delight in the range of curiosity, erud= ition, and sense of humor displayed throughout by Phil, Paul, Janet, Arlene= , and everybody else. =20 It reminded me of something I read at least 50 years ago, that one of the s= urest signs of high intelligence is a fascination with words themselves, th= e very tools of our thinking. The OSPREY clearly includes a pretty smart = bunch, then. =20 I was particularly glad someone would go to the great mother lode itself, t= he OED. Reading thirough the historical citations illustrates an old trut= h, that the idea of "correct" spelling is a relatively new one. Prior to = Samuel Johnson's great dictionary in the mid-18th century, ortohography was= a sort of glorious anarchy in which creativity flourished unfettered.=20= =20=20 =20 The only goal was to try to capture in visual symbols what the ear heard in= an era when few people traveled more than 20 miles in a lifetime and most = were unaware of the diversity of dialectical pronunciations afoot over thei= r local horizon. =20 In other words, trying to pin down one "right" spelling would be akin to lo= oking at series of maps of, say, Cape Henlopen over 150 years, picking any = one of them and saying "this is the right shape of the Cape." From a geo= logical perspective, Cape Henlopen is a wagging finger; from the perspectiv= e of of a history of the language, "wigeon/-widgeon/wigin/wigyon/wegyon/wid= gion . . .et al " is about as steady as a flock of sanderlings in flight ov= er a beach. =20 Thanks to all. =20 Leo Weigant >>> mazhude@HOTMAIL.COM 3/3/04 2:15:52 PM >>> Just to add fuel to the flames, according to the Oxford English Dictionary (note that the Australians called it a Widgeon as well...): Widgeon, wigeon, sb. Forms: 6 wegyon, -ion, wygeon, wigion, 6*7 wigen, widgen, -in, 7 -me, wldg(e)ing, widgion, 6-. wigeon, 7* widgeon. [Of difficult etymology.The form suggests a French origin (cf. pigeon), but no appropriate Fr. forms are evidenced as early as the English word or with the required meaning; cf vigeon a West Indian duck (1667 Dui Tertre, Hist. Gen. des Antilles II. 277), of which there is a nasalized form vingeon (x) widgeon in Eastern dial., (2) a duck of Madagascar (1771 Dict. de Trivoux); beside which there are gingeon 'sorte de canard qu'on trouve dans les grandes Antilles' (1832 Raymond Dictl. Gen.), and Angevin dial. digeon widgeon. F. vigeon and It. bibbio wild duck have been referred to L. vipio kind of crane, but this derivation is very dubious. The various extant forms suggest the possibility of a series of formations with suffix -io(nem) on parallel onomatopoetic bases, piu-, biu-, viu-, diu-, giu.- (cf. WHEW, WHEWER).] 1. A wild duck of the genus Mareca, esp. M. penelope of Europe and northern Asia; other species are M. americana of N. America and M. sibilatrix of southern S. America. (Collective pl. in later use usually widgeon: cf. teal.) 1513 Bk. Keruyuge in Babees Bk. 279 In the second course *chekyns, pygyons, teeles, wegyons, mallardes. I~4 TURNER Avium Prwcfrs. C ~, Quum multm sint aues aqua. tic~ anati smules, sed Ininores, ut sunt, tebe uocat~ ab AngUs Vuigeiie & pochard~, 1591 HARINGTOr. Or!. Fur. Pref., At my Lord Maiors dinner they say he would put up a widgen for his supper. 1604 E. G(tciMsTosr) tr. D'~4cosla's His!, Indies xii. xvi. 170 Great numbers of wilde.duckes and wigens. 1655 Moufet & Bennet Health's Improv. xii. 107 Teals and Widgins. .commonly. .are very fat and sweet of taste. 1703 DAMPIER kay. 111. ~ Wigeon and Teal also are said to be in great plenty here. 1774 GOLDSM. Nat. Hist. (1776) VI. 139 The Lincolnshire decoys. principally contribute to supply the markets of London with wild-fowl. 'the number of ducks, wigeon, and teal, that are sent thither is amazing. 1788 Encycl, .Brit. 1. 662/I The American wigeon . 'is rather bigger than our wigeon. 1877 Black Green Past. xl, In this bountiful and beneficent land, flowing over with broiled bluefish, Carolina widgeon, (etc.]. x886 PAYNE-GALLWEY Bk. Duck Decoys 17A Decoy*by means of which wildfowl, such as Wigeon, Mallard, and Teal, are caught alive. 1901 Shooting Times 22 June 21/2 On Lough Neagh, the wigeon is known as the 'grass. wigeon' or the 'grass-duck'. This may be due to its habit of feeding on the grassy sward along the shores. b. Locally applied to various wild ducks of other genera: see quots. x668 CHARLETON Onomast. 99 Anas: Fusca... the Redheaded Widgeon. 1676 Ray Willughby's Ornith. III 288 The Pochard or great red.headed Wigeon. 1885 Swainson Prov. Names Birds 155 In Shropshire every species of wild duck, with the exception of Anas boscas, is called wigeon. 1898 Morris Austral Engl,, Widgeon, the common English name for a Duck of the genus Mareca, extended generally by sportsmen to any wild duck. 1901 Shooting Times 22 June 21/2 The pochard is distinguished by the name of the 'red.headed wigeon' or 'stone wigeon'. _________________________________________________________________ Find things fast with the new MSN Toolbar * includes FREE pop-up blocking! http://clk.atdmt.com/AVE/go/onm00200414ave/direct/01/=20 =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D --=__PartC8E9C288.0__=-- =========================================================================