riddle@ut-sally.UUCP (Prentiss Riddle) (03/20/85)
> > pooh'-pooh' A reduplication of pooh. > > > > pooh'-pooh', or pooh'pooh' the'o.ry The theory that language orginated in > > interjections which gradually acquired meaning. Cf. BOWWOW THEORY, > > DINGDONG THEORY > In some areas of publishing, it can be difficult to prove that > someone is copying your work. Often publishers producing things like > maps, or dictionaries will put bogus entries into the work. ... I believe > you have stumbled across one of these tracer-tags. To which I say: pooh! :-) Seriously, I think both definitions are legitimate. "Reduplication" is a process of great importance in some languages and not at all unusual in English whereby a word is doubled, sometimes with no specific change in meaning. Look elswhere in the same dictionary and you'll probably find the entry: bye'-bye' A reduplication of bye. As for the second definition, there was once a family of theories of the origin of language with intentionally comical names. Although I doubt that any of the theories was ever seriously believed to tell the whole story, they all had something going for them as partial explanations as to how language may have begun. The "ding-dong" theory, for instance, held that language was original onomotopoeic, i.e., the original words imitated the objects or processes they denoted ("ding-dong" or something like it being the word for a bell). The "yo-heave-ho" theory claimed that language originated as grunts made in the course of bodily exertion. I don't recall having heard of the "pooh-pooh" theory, but it certainly fits in with the others. Take a look at any old-fashioned textbook on introductory linguistics and you'll find some of these theories mentioned. --- Prentiss Riddle ("Aprendiz de todo, maestro de nada.") --- {ihnp4,harvard,seismo,gatech,ctvax}!ut-sally!riddle --- riddle@ut-sally.UUCP, riddle@ut-sally.ARPA, riddle%zotz@ut-sally
suze@terak.UUCP (Suzanne Barnett) (03/22/85)
> > > pooh'-pooh' A reduplication of pooh. > "Reduplication" is a process of great importance in some languages and not Just for fun ... Webster's 9th Collegiate (I know, it's awful, but it's right here, right now :-) ) defines the prefix "re-" as ":again :anew" It defines duplication as "copying or repeating" (this is what it boils down to after it sends you to look up duplicate) so, re + duplication = again copying which obviously means there must be three or more, right :-) !! (original, first copy, reduplicated (3rd+) copy) I guess reduplication joins the ranks of words that don't mean what they say. ***************************************************************** It is left to the connoisseur to check the dictionary meaning. -- Suzanne Barnett uucp: ...{decvax,hao,ihnp4,seismo}!noao!terak!suze phone: 602 998 4800 us mail: Terak Corporation, 14151 N 76th street, Scottsdale, AZ 85260