CHAT: Stew

> Date:         Thu, 15 Jul 1999 15:17:00 +0100
> From: A Rosta <a.rosta@...>
> OED [1st ed] says "scouse" is short for "lobscouse" (which is not
> in my active vocabulary), said to be "of obscure origin" and
> meaning "a sailor's dish consisting of meat stewed with vegetables
> and ship's biscuit, or the like". I see that some of the citations use
> "lob's course" and "lap's course", but there's no way of telling
> whether these are folk-etymologizations. "Lob" means "a thick
> mixture", but also "a fool" (occurring in "lob's pound" = prison).
The word exists in Danish as "labskovs," where the dish is now usually
made from lightly salted pork and potatoes, seasoned with black pepper
corns and bay leaves, and stewed until the potatoes form a thick even
mass. To be served with a sprig of parsley, full grain rye bread and
butter, and a cold beer.

Damn, now you've gone and made me hungry.

Anyway, the point: The dictionary says "from Low German _labskaus_ or
English _lobscouse,_ of unknown origin."

Lars Mathiesen (U of Copenhagen CS Dep) <thorinn@...> (Humour NOT marked)