Posted by:
Nightingale
(
)
Date: September 24, 2022 03:04PM
Lot's Wife Wrote:
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> I think you would agree, based on the full OED,
> that the vast majority of words in the English
> language have undergone shifts in meaning and
> usage over the decades and centuries.
I find myself more often looking words up to ensure the meaning/connotation is what I intend. It's interesting to note the seemingly increasingly rapid changes. I often check now to ensure I'm not using hopelessly dated expressions (although sometimes I do it on purpose). I didn't know in younger years that such evolution occurred within one's own living memory.
One example is that yesterday I found myself looking up the expression "nowt so queer as folk". (I can't now recall the reason for my query - I mean - it was yesterday - sheesh). As an aside, it was interesting to me that it's listed as "colloquial, Yorkshire" as that's where my dad's father was from. I was wondering how it came to its current meaning and especially how it transformed from an intended deadly insult to a term now accepted and used by those it was previously meant to disparage.
My sweet little English mum, without a mean sinew in her body, often used that word, such as saying "I feel queer" to mean not well, or something is "queer", meaning a mystery. I had to finally tell her at some point that the connotation wasn't positive. She bit her tongue for a while but eventually caught up. It can be challenging to continually update one's vocabulary as times change. Who ever thought that once you'd learned words you'd one day have to revisit your vocab choices.
This site is interesting:
https://www.cjr.org/language_corner/queer.phpExcerpts:
"Originally a derogatory name for a homosexual, “queer” has been embraced by some in the nonheterosexual community. In response, some activists in the gay community (to use a broad term) started calling themselves “queer” in a prideful way.
"Since it first showed up in English about 1513, “queer” has always meant something not normal, something peculiar, something odd. Counterfeit money was “queer”; someone who is sick might say they “feel queer”; playground bullies would call someone “queer” without knowing or intending any sexual connotations."
"The Dictionary of American Slang says “in the early 1990s queer was adopted as a non-pejorative designation by some homosexuals, in the spirit of ‘gay pride.’"
"Some sources trace the first adoption of “queer” as a positive self-label to the group Queer Nation, founded in the early 1990s as a radical organization to combat violence against homosexuals. “By co-opting the word ‘queer,’ QN claims, they have disarmed homophobes,” Newsweek wrote in 1991."
"Since then, “queer” has expanded beyond meaning only “homosexual.” In fact, “queer” does not have a single meaning, except perhaps “not heterosexual.” Some people who identify as neither male nor female call themselves “genderqueer,” while others who identify that same way might call themselves “gender-fluid” or “nonbinary.” Even the “Q” in LGBTQ could stand for either “queer” or “questioning.”
“Queer” is a label, one adopted by some people, rejected by others. So it can’t be used to describe individuals, a group of specific individuals, or their gender orientations, unless their preference is known. And it can still sting. As the AP Stylebook says: “Queer is acceptable for people and organizations that use the term to identify themselves. Do not use it when intended as a slur.”
That should be obvious and not too much to ask: Don't use a word when intended as a slur.
Mum was a librarian and was Chief Book Lady to us, bringing home armfuls of good and great books every weekend for us all to enjoy. It felt like big love that she knew what each one of us would enjoy reading. My father used to sit and read the dictionary (Oxford English, of course). As a kid I thought that was ever so slightly strange (as in, not very interesting). But Dad used big words and encouraged us to check out their definitions. My parents' influence rubbed off on all of us kids as the 5 of us are all voracious readers, not always of erudite texts but still, even a "dime store" novel is reading. In our teen years my older sister and I were thrilled to go into a grotty used book store every Saturday to pick up a few well-thumbed novels to get us through the week. I've graduated now to a cute little shop with brand new books where the staff knows my favourite authors and also my name. They love books and so do I.
I look on it as a fine inheritance that all my parents' children haunt bookstores and libraries, finding treasures and sharing them out amongst ourselves. Thanks, folks. You did OK by us on this score.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/24/2022 03:11PM by Nightingale.