Re: HUMOUR: Pronounce This...

Christian Thalmann wrote:


>--- In conlang@y..., Roger Mills <romilly@E...> wrote:
>
>> I got a chuckle from--
>> 'oy'  hurt, ache; pain
>
>Hmmm, I don't intuitively parse /?Oj?/ as a painful interjection...
>Is there any specific cultural background you're refering to?  An
>instance in literature or a movie?
>
Just remember:  Gmc. /a/ > Yiddish /o/, at least in many cases.  It's the
common cry of pain/surprise/etc. _ai!_   Very familiar to Americans
regardless of creed, thanks to Jewish comedians (along with a lot of other
Yiddishisms, many naughty or at least snide and pejorative).

I believe it's _schlemiehl_ that's defined as:  a person who kills his
parents, then begs the court to have mercy on a poor orphan.

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