Tuesday, 5 February 2013

The Source of Old Sayings

Old sayings, where did they originate from, what do they mean and do they make sense?


We have all heard them at some time in our lives, perhaps from our parents, or from their parents; perhaps even from friends.

Our recently installed investigative contributor Mr S.M.Head is always astounded by some of the expressions and, despite their illogical meanings, are still used. "I have always had an interest in  expressions and try to determine what they mean, do they make sense and where they originate from" he commented recently.

He added "I grew up in a bungalow and my mum would often say 'Well, I will go to the bottom of our stairs' - I never understood how she could, because we did not have any!"

Some like "If you do not stop crying - I will give you something to cry about" are used throughout the country and share the same meaning, specifically to stop your child crying, your going to beat the hell out of them until they stop, a trend that has largely dimminished except in some traditionalist households.

However some like "If the wind changes -your face will stay like that" makes him wonder, where does this come from and how will a change in wind direction affect someones facial expression?

He then started to wonder if other readers have heard, or used, expressions that have been handed down through the ages that make no logical sense?
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14 comments:

  1. Unknown5 February 2013 at 11:45

    Interesting that all these expressions are ways of threatening violence against children without actually having to follow it up.

    I wonder if these phrases are dying out, as parents are either 'too soft' on their children or fall into the 'Will you shut the f*** up mummy's pissed' school which I witnessed a few years ago after a world cup match.

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    Replies
    1. scratching my head5 February 2013 at 14:38

      Here are a few more I picked up today:

      Sugar me dumpling,

      Salt me bob,

      If the kids were misbehaving at the dinner table - shut your face and eat you dinner? If you keep your mouth shut how can you eat your food?

      If asked what was for dinner - two jumps at the cupboard and a bit of the knob/handle.

      Delete
    2. scratching my head5 February 2013 at 14:40

      Oh, nearly forgot:

      Piffy on a rock bun

      Delete
    3. Unknown5 February 2013 at 14:51

      I remember most of these from childhood but I don't use them myself.

      I'm not sure if I've ended a centuries old Lancashire tradition or whether these were just popular in the 30's, 40's and 50's.

      My favourite dialect issue is whether you pronounce 'lorry' as 'lorry' or 'lurry'. There's a evidence that 'lurry' is more correct.

      Delete
  2. Anonymous5 February 2013 at 11:51

    Still on your own their Choughy.
    Not exactly a sparkling success this, is it?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unknown5 February 2013 at 11:56

      I'm not really on my own, as I'm replying to a point made by someone else above, and to the anonymous moaner here.

      So that's at least 3 people.

      In terms of success, it depends how you measure it.

      We can match MEN article for article in ripping information out of Twitter and cobbling nonsense together.
      We can provide intelligent analysis of complex stories, unlike MEN.
      We provide a platform for racists to post their views if they want to.
      We probably have more comments published than them.
      We have more stories about dog muck and chip pan fires.

      So far I'd say it's a draw as I suspect they have more readers.

      Delete
    2. scratching my head5 February 2013 at 14:34

      It also provides a platform for people to leave criticism of us and the posts we place, unlike other regional papers (you know who you are) who throw 'their toys out of the pram' and ban contributors not just their individual 'offending' comment.

      Finally, we do not attempt to fool our readers into thinking that we have more contributors then we actually have. To illustrate my point, check last weeks rag and two online posts were left by the same contributor but with printed with different pen names ! Poor Peter Pan, now he is banned, how will they fill their online message posts in the actual paper copy of their paper?

      Delete
    3. Unknown5 February 2013 at 14:48

      "Finally, we do not attempt to fool our readers into thinking that we have more contributors then we actually have"

      err. I have a bit of a confession there...

      Delete
    4. scratching my head5 February 2013 at 14:51

      Don't worry - I forgive you (remember I am a priest sometimes)

      Delete
    5. Unknown5 February 2013 at 14:52

      I'm also trying to rememeber who used to call me Choughy. I remember Choughie quite well, but not Choughy.

      Delete
  3. Anonymous5 February 2013 at 18:10

    Calm down Choughy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unknown5 February 2013 at 18:45

      Are you the ghost of Michael Winner?

      Delete
    2. scratching my head5 February 2013 at 19:00

      I know I said old sayings, but from beyond the grave is stratching it a bit

      Delete
  4. Anonymous8 February 2013 at 08:05

    I seem to remember a line from a Terry Pratchett book 'Come and sit by fire and call the cat a bast*rd', not quite the same but I found it funny. Also, can I point out that I am not the anon of 5 Feb.

    ReplyDelete

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