CHAT: the gay Canadian (was: "have a nice day")

Matt Pearson wrote:

> Matt.
> the (expatriate) gay Canadian
After picking on Dirk's "anymore", I think it's time to pick
on Matt's "the" above.  Just what does it mean?  There doesn't
seem to be any definiteness here, unlike "The Gr[ae]y Wizard",
for example.  "Nick the Greek" was clearly not the only Greek,
nor even the only Greek in the context (professional gamblers),
yet "Nick a Greek" is impossible, and even non-restrictive
"Nick, a Greek" is a bit odd, sort of newspaper-style.

ObConlang:  the "definite article" in Lojban, _le_, marks not
definiteness but specificity.  It's used when the speaker's
intention is the only guaranteed way of determining the referent.

--

Schlingt dreifach einen Kreis vom dies! || John Cowan <jcowan@...>
Schliesst euer Aug vor heiliger Schau,  || http://www.reutershealth.com
Denn er genoss vom Honig-Tau,           || http://www.ccil.org/~cowan
Und trank die Milch vom Paradies.            -- Coleridge (tr. Politzer)