Don’t be a Collywobble, Read Branna
If you haven’t figured it out by now, I am the ultimate, often indulgent, word nerd. I pray not to appear as a fopdoodle, making idle claptrack. Oops, there I go again! While we are bringing back the vestige of vintage clothing, why not revisit the vocabulary of days gone by?
For those of you not as mesmerized by monikers as me, let’s synopsize scripts over time. You’ve likely heard reference to “Old English,” not to be confused with the transformative powers of the popular furniture polish.
In a word (or many!) the Old English language gave way to Middle English, which gave way to Early Modern English, which gave way to Modern English – our current creole. However, these are just labels that linguists have assigned over the centuries.
According to historians of their time, Old English was the earliest form of the English language. Stemming from the 5th century, this version of verbiage encompassed the epic poem “Beowulf” and showcased characteristic kennings, as well as my forever favorite form of expression – the lively litany of alliteration.
Around 1160 AD, our way of talking transformed into Middle English. Veritable verb endings often ended in “st” for the second-person singular (“thou readst”) and “th” for the third-person singular (“he readeth”). Do you enjoyeth this buoyant banter I’m bestowing upon you?
Next, we enter the era of Early Modern English around 1500 AD, sourcing the idyllic idioms and poetic prose of William Shakespeare. By now, this barrage has likely bumfuzzled you big-time!
Before I go into more gobbledygook or fancy fiddle-fiddle from the past, let’s take a look at the tenuous translations of one timeless touting:
Old English: “Beo þæs andgites þe þu wille þu gesyhst on þyssum worolde.”
Middle English: “Beo þat chaunge þou wolt seen in þe worlde.”
Early Modern English: “Be thou the change thou wishest to behold in the world.”
Modern English: “Be the change you want to see in the world.”
Now tell me…are you currently collywobbles or just plain curious for more wondrous word wisdom? Glad you asked! Here’s a fun factoid to reflect upon: the Oxford English Dictionary holds home to one single word that has 645 use cases for the verb version alone! Got any guesses?
OK, so all this twattle attests that I’m totally twitterpated with terminology. Do I have you ‘biting at the chomp’ for a delve into more dialectal details? If not, thank you for indulging my prolonged prologue of passionate parlance. However, in the event that I’ve captivated your curiosity, go ahead…dig out that dusty old dictionary and dig in to deciphering today’s dedication to delightful diction. And, by the way, the big reveal for that prolific word referenced above? (Here’s a hint – I hope I haven’t RUN you off by now – wink, wink).
As my hero Paul Harvey would say, now you know “the rest of the story!”
Branna (McCarty) Shores believes that “HOME is where your story begins.” A Noblesville native and proud graduate of NHS and Purdue University, she is a professional speaker, advocate for mental health and work / family balance and retired social worker. Branna is the mother of two grown daughters, six precious grandchildren and wife of one brave husband! Her passions include singing, writing and sharing the lighter side of life through lessons learned, both personally and professionally. She can be contacted at branna18@gmail.com