----- Original Message -----
From: "Tristan McLeay" <zsau@...>
To: <CONLANG@...>
Sent: Tuesday, September 16, 2003 12:13 PM
Subject: Re: The English/French counting system (WAS: number systems
fromconlangs)
> On Tue, 16 Sep 2003, John Cowan wrote:
>
> > Tristan McLeay scripsit:
> >
> > > _Another_ oddity of Americans and time-telling is the way they use
seasons
> > > for time, in spite of the total absence of a relation between what
they're
> > > saying and the weather. This means that 'fall' may translate into
either
> > > 'autumn' or 'spring' depending on context, and usually the latter.
> >
> > What on earth are you talking about?
>
> The bottom half.
>
> > "Fall" is a synonym for "autumn",
> > always; indeed, it is the original and native word, which we in North
> > America retained when the Brits (and their more junior colonies)
switched
> > to the more pompous Latin derivative. It refers to the period between
> > 21 September and 22 December, give or take a day; of course, in informal
> > use it may start later or end sooner, depending on the weather and the
> > climate in the location where the person is speaking. The etymology of
> > the term is transparent, and refers to the behavior of deciduous trees
> > in preparation for winter.
>
> Spring in Australia starts on 1 September and finishes on 30 November.
> (People stare at me in disbelief and might follow up with comments of
> Americans' stupidity if I mention you start your seasons around the
> soltices and equinoxes.) Sorry, I forgot to mention that, coming from
> Australia as I do, the seasons are switched.
In Britain we(roughly) start on solstices and equinoxes. Spring starts on
the 21st of March, and ends on the 20th of June.