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Re: Methods of Question-Forming

From:Garth Wallace <gwalla@...>
Date:Saturday, April 12, 2003, 20:09
John Cowan wrote:
> Jake X scripsit: > > >>OK, I give in. But I'm curious now. When did thou and you switch places >>in formality? Logically, thou should be the more intimate one. > > > Historically, it was, and it was used in addressing not only friends and > family but also God, the Ultimate Intimate, and so used in the King James > and Douay Versions. In "Our Father, who/which art in heaven", the "art" > shows the intimate form is implicit. When all other uses were lost, > these texts remained important, and so "thou" came to be thought of as > a version of "you" for occasions of ceremony.
Also possibly because archaic forms are frequently thought of as being more formal.