Seldom-used words - M to A

[oggbashan]

Emmet is a new one on me

From Old English:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emmet_(Cornish)

I was in Plymouth. Many Cornish slang words were in use there.

 

[AllardChardon]

Ok, I think I get it. Emmets are tourists. Are grockles also tourists, maybe with a bit more cash on hand?

landlubber - noun (ca. 1700) LANDSMAN <clumsy ~s learning to sail>

 

[Handley_Page]

Ok, I think I get it. Emmets are tourists. Are grockles also tourists, maybe with a bit more cash on hand?

landlubber - noun (ca. 1700) LANDSMAN <clumsy ~s learning to sail>

Amongst the sailors of Nelson's Navy, a Landlubber was a very new, unwilling, untried, untrusted and probably unsafe ,member of the crew. It was not intended as a polite epithet.

 

[oggbashan]

...

landlubber - noun (ca. 1700) LANDSMAN <clumsy ~s learning to sail>

In the 18th and 19th centuries the Royal Navy was frequently manned by using the Press Gang who would prowl streets picking up any likely men for service. That was forced conscription.

Many seamen were exempt particularly if they worked for the Customs service or were fishermen, but obviously skilled seamen were most suitable.

The Press Gang had to make do with whoever they could get. They took prisoners from jails and other people who had never been to sea. Those pressed men were initially useless on a sailing ship - landlubbers. They could be told to pull on a rope, to push a capstan round, but they couldn't set the sails or climb the rigging.

During the Napoleonic wars many naval ships left UK ports with a high proportion of landlubbers and were therefore very inefficient until the new men began to learn how to be seamen. Some ships had 40% or more of the crew classed as landlubbers.

The Royal Navy tried hard to get seamen. If an East India Company ship arrived in the UK that ship's sailors knew they were at risk of the Press Gang so would go far inland away from the sea as fast as they could. That led to the term "swallowing the anchor" for former seamen who became inland dwellers.

The Royal Navy's need for seamen helped to start the War of 1812. The Royal Navy didn't distinguish between British or American and would take American seamen from American ships, even stopping American ships on the high seas to take a proportion of skilled seamen.

The range of nationalities found on British ships at the Battle of Trafalgar was amazing. Some of the 'British' sailors were actually French, Spanish, Italian... and were fighting their countrymen.

The landlubbers had to become seamen quickly or the ship was at risk. While still classed as landlubbers they were allowed to make mistakes without the risk of the severe punishments that seamen might face. But that tolerance lasted only for days, not weeks. The ship's safety depended on the landlubbers becoming efficient seamen.

 

[AllardChardon]

Og, when I added landlubber to the mix, I didn't realize it was an actual classification instead of just an insult as Handley referred to. Very enlightening. I recently studied more about the War of 1812, since it is barely referred to in either elementary school (Kindergarten thru 8th grade at my school) or High School (9th thru 12 grade). The British impressment of American sailors was a contributing factor to the War of 1812, along with the fact the British
government may have wanted their colonies back. But the burning of Washington, D.C., made it something no one here wants to talk about, in my humble opinion. We Americans are not keen on admitting defeat, even when it stares us in the face.

lamster - noun (1904) a fugitive esp. from the law

 

[CarlusMagnus]

Og, when I added landlubber to the mix, I didn't realize it was an actual classification…

I think the formal classification (or "rating") was "landsman".

 

[oggbashan]

...

I recently studied more about the War of 1812, since it is barely referred to in either elementary school (Kindergarten thru 8th grade at my school) or High School (9th thru 12 grade). The British impressment of American sailors was a contributing factor to the War of 1812, along with the fact the British
government may have wanted their colonies back. But the burning of Washington, D.C., made it something no one here wants to talk about, in my humble opinion. We Americans are not keen on admitting defeat, even when it stares us in the face.

lamster - noun (1904) a fugitive esp. from the law

What many don't realise about the War of 1812 was that the burning of Washington was a reprisal for American forces burning a Canadian town (with significant and deliberate loss of private civilian homes). The burning of Washington was more civilised. The civilian homes were left alone.

C S Forester had a problem when writing his Hornblower books. They became very popular in the US but Forester had based them on the life of Admiral Cochrane. Cochrane's most famous act was...

...the burning of Washington. Admiral Horatio Hornblower didn't.

lamster? The expression 'on the lam' meant on the run from arrest, or jail, and sometimes from creditors.

 

[CarlusMagnus]

…

C S Forester had a problem when writing his Hornblower books. They became very popular in the US but Forester had based them on the life of Admiral Cochrane. Cochrane's most famous act was...

...the burning of Washington. Admiral Horatio Hornblower didn't.

…

Admiral Lord Cochrane's autobiography, Memoirs of a Fighting Captain, can be found on Amazon.

Admiral Lord Hornblower's "biography" can be found, too: The Life and Times of Horatio Hornblower, by C. Northcote Parkinson (who is more popularly known for formulating what is now known as Parkinson's Law).

C.S. Forester, in his reminisces about writing the Hornblower series, explicitly acknowledged his problem, observing that he had to find ways to keep Hornblower occupied in matters that would keep him from having to fight the Americans. (The first of the books was serialized in an American magazine.)

 

[AllardChardon]

Og, yes, of course, the burning of Washington was retaliatory. The most interesting part of the story is the tempest that suddenly appeared, put out the flames and caused a British retreat. I found the similarity of Elizabeth I's victory against the Spanish Armada and the saving of the White House, both by tempests, almost divinely ordered.

Carlus, thank you for the additional information.

This next word may only be seldom-used outside of the British Isles;

Lammas - noun (before 12c) 1. August 1 originally celebrated in England as a harvest festival - called also Lammas Day 2. the time of the year around Lammas Day

 

[Handley_Page]

Og, yes, of course, the burning of Washington was retaliatory. The most interesting part of the story is the tempest that suddenly appeared, put out the flames and caused a British retreat. I found the similarity of Elizabeth I's victory against the Spanish Armada and the saving of the White House, both by tempests, almost divinely ordered.

Carlus, thank you for the additional information.

This next word may only be seldom-used outside of the British Isles;

Lammas - noun (before 12c) 1. August 1 originally celebrated in England as a harvest festival - called also Lammas Day 2. the time of the year around Lammas Day

It's marked that way at our local Church.

 

[AllardChardon]

Greetings everyone.

Many readers and posters on this site are probably familiar with this word, but I was not;

lamia - noun (14c) a female demon: VAMPIRE

 

[Weird Harold]

Greetings everyone.

Many readers and posters on this site are probably familiar with this word, but I was not;

lamia - noun (14c) a female demon: VAMPIRE

That's a very sparse description. Wikipedia has much more:

In ancient Greek mythology, Lamia (/ˈleɪmiə/; Greek: Λάμια) was a beautiful queen of Libya who became a child-eating daemon.

Aristophanes claimed her name derived from the Greek word for gullet (λαιμός; laimos), referring to her habit of devouring children.

 

[oggbashan]

That's a very sparse description. Wikipedia has much more:

There's even more to Lamia than that:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamia

In more modern mythology a Lamia is half-woman and half snake. She wraps her snake coils around her victim before devouring her (usually male) victim.

I have used lamia in two of my stories:

https://www.literotica.com/s/carolines-lamia

https://www.literotica.com/s/maidensdoom-wyrm

The Northern English term for a lamia is Wyrm and there are several folk tales about Wyrms. Bram Stoker's The Lair of the White Witch features a lamia/wyrm.

http://img12.deviantart.net/4586/i/2012/174/7/6/lamia_by_ravenscar45-d54jtvd.jpg

Lamia also feature frequently in Japanese Manga:

http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/powerlisting/images/f/f4/Miia_Lamia.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20150124111741

 

[Handley_Page]

This reminds me of the Lambton Worm (Wyrm), a folk-tale dating back to the time of the Crusades.
It's still sung today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsO7SeCvgMw

A proper treatment may be found on Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lambton_Worm

 

[oggbashan]

This reminds me of the Lambton Worm (Wyrm), a folk-tale dating back to the time of the Crusades.
It's still sung today: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsO7SeCvgMw

A proper treatment may be found on Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lambton_Worm

Song and lyrics:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcZcOoP_v2k

 

[AllardChardon]

Og, Handley and Harold, that was very interesting. Thank you for filling in the details. Please excuse my absence. Lately, I have been a bit depressed from the happenings in my country. I must and will persevere, like so many of my compatriots.

lambrequin - noun (ca. 1725) 1. a scarf used to cover a knight's helmet 2. a short decorative drapery for a shelf edge or for the top of a window casing: VALANCE

 

[Handley_Page]

Og, Handley and Harold, that was very interesting. Thank you for filling in the details. Please excuse my absence. Lately, I have been a bit depressed from the happenings in my country. I must and will persevere, like so many of my compatriots.

lambrequin - noun (ca. 1725) 1. a scarf used to cover a knight's helmet 2. a short decorative drapery for a shelf edge or for the top of a window casing: VALANCE

I didn't think we had helmeted knights in 1725.

 

[beachbum1958]

I didn't think we had helmeted knights in 1725.

Oops, wrong thread, sorry

 

[oggbashan]

...

lambrequin - noun (ca. 1725) 1. a scarf used to cover a knight's helmet 2. a short decorative drapery for a shelf edge or for the top of a window casing: VALANCE

I didn't think we had helmeted knights in 1725.

HP, the date is when the word was first recorded in print. That is not necessarily its first use. It probably started when the 18th century became interested in antiquarian studies. Many words that are supposedly ancient were invented in the 18th Century.

But - a lambrequin is useful addition to a knight's helmet if the battle was in a hot country. Polished steel helmets could become very hot in bright sunshine - less so for 20th Century helmets which were dull colours and had better linings to - in theory - provide air circulation and shock protection. They could still become very hot in bright sunshine. That can be seen in photos of the North African campaigns of WW2. Both sides are pictured without their helmets unless they were actually in battle.

 

[beachbum1958]

HP, the date is when the word was first recorded in print. That is not necessarily its first use. It probably started when the 18th century became interested in antiquarian studies. Many words that are supposedly ancient were invented in the 18th Century.

But - a lambrequin is useful addition to a knight's helmet if the battle was in a hot country. Polished steel helmets could become very hot in bright sunshine - less so for 20th Century helmets which were dull colours and had better linings to - in theory - provide air circulation and shock protection. They could still become very hot in bright sunshine. That can be seen in photos of the North African campaigns of WW2. Both sides are pictured without their helmets unless they were actually in battle.

The veil that a knight in 15thc plate armour wore that covered the back of the helmet and draped over the shoulder cops, and probably decorated with his coat of arms or emblem, was originally known as a 'Mantling'. I suspect the word 'lambrequin' is an 18th century coinage to describe said veil, as by the 18th century 'Mantling' had quite a specific meaning in Heraldry; it's the word used to describe the rococo scrolls or ermine-trimmed swags framing a depiction of a coat of arms or banner.

 

[Handley_Page]

I love this thread.
I manage to learn something nearly every time I read it.
Thanks, BB.

 

[AllardChardon]

I agree with you, Handley, I also love this thread and should do a better job of taking care of it. Thanks Og and beachbum for your continued interest.

lambent - adj ( 1647) 1. playing lightly on or over a surface: FLICKERING 2. softly bright or radiant 3. marked by lightness or brilliance esp. of expression

 

[beachbum1958]

I agree with you, Handley, I also love this thread and should do a better job of taking care of it. Thanks Og and beachbum for your continued interest.

lambent - adj ( 1647) 1. playing lightly on or over a surface: FLICKERING 2. softly bright or radiant 3. marked by lightness or brilliance esp. of expression

I do love this word, and use it frequently, as, to me, at least, it perfectly describes the brightness in a persons eyes reflecting the last light of sunset; for instance, if I'm feeling hyperbolic, or want to convey a fleeting impression, I might write something like 'Ashley's emerald eyes glowed in the sunset, twin orbs of lambent green fire in the dying light of day'.

 

[CarlusMagnus]

A few more from Lost Beauties of the English Language, Charles Mackay, LL.D., 1987, Bibliophile Books, London, England

Lade, to empty out or to let in water by degrees, whence the diminutive ladle.

Kime, a silly fellow.

Kinchen, a small child; from the German diminutive of kin, a child, kindchen. This word is said by Nares to be a 'cant term;' but is not such by its derivation. Properly it should be kinkin, on the same principle as 'mannikin,' a little man.

Kith, (also Kithe, Kythe) to show, to appear, to make known, from whence the preterite kouth or couth, known;sel-couth used by Chaucer, and meaning seldom known; and the modern word uncouth, which originally meant strange and unknown but which has by degrees come to signify, rough, rude, and unshapely. The modern word kith, as distinguished from kin, in the phrase of 'kith and kin,' means acquaintances, as distinguished from relatives.

 

[Handley_Page]

uncouth ?
Perhaps "Uncultured" might be a good definition.