Maven

Maven Maven Maven By Maeve Maddox A reader who lives in Cardiff, Wales wants to know more about the word maven: In the last fortnight or so I’ve twice seen a word I’ve never come across before (and I read a lot!). The word is ‘maven’, and I’ve encountered it in the self-development context. I’ve looked it up and it seems to have come into use in the US in the 1980s, from a Hebrew term. A post on this word would be very interesting.    The word maven- also spelled mavin and mayvin- is from the Yiddish word meyvn (plural mevinim): â€Å"expert, connoisseur.† The Yiddish word comes from Hebrew mebin, â€Å"a person with understanding, a teacher.† The earliest use cited in the OED (spelled mavin) is dated 1907. The Ngram Viewer graph (set for English) indicates that maven existed in print as early as 1809, mavin in 1813, and mayvin in 1879. The OED labels maven â€Å"chiefly North American† and suggests that its spread may be related to radio advertising introduced by a Chicago-based food company in 1964. The ads were voiced by Allen Swift, who was introduced as â€Å"the herring maven.† Note: Ira Stadlen, known professionally as â€Å"Allen Swift,† was an American voice actor who- among many other jobs- voiced Mighty Mouse and characters in the Tom and Jerry cartoons. Although maven is a new word to the UK reader who suggested this post, the first time I encountered the word maven was while I was living in London. I had a high-rise-dwelling friend who was referred to in a local newspaper article as â€Å"a rooftop-gardening maven.† William Safire, who wrote a weekly column called â€Å"On Language† for the New York Times from 1979-2009, referred to himself as â€Å"a language maven.† Food writer Arthur Schwartz calls himself â€Å"The Food Maven.† A Web search turns up a math maven, a makeup maven, a plumbing maven, and some sort of software â€Å"core engine† called â€Å"Maven.† Maven has joined the ranks of guru as a word for a wise or knowledgeable person. Related post Gurus and Other Teachers Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Is She a "Lady" or a "Woman"?For Sale vs. On SaleHow to Write a Proposal

Dont Blame the Americans for this One!

Dont Blame the Americans for this One! Dont Blame the Americans for this One! Dont Blame the Americans for this One! By Maeve Maddox Ever since the 17th century, our English cousins have been blaming Americans for distorting, weakening, or vulgarizing the English language. For many, the term Americanism next to a word in the dictionary is a warning to avoid using it. Well, a recent press release from the Old Country puts paid to the idea that the English language is more respected in its land of origin than it is in the New World. Heres the headline in the Telegraph: Councils ban elitist and discriminatory Latin phrases In a story that sounds more like an April Fools Day joke than a bona fide news story, we are informed that several English City Councils have forbidden their employees to use specific Latin words and phrases. What are some of these dreadful, incomprehensible, elitist horrors? Here are some examples: bona fide, e.g., ad lib, etc., i.e., per se, quid pro quo, vice versa, via, status quo If any of these elitist expressions are unfamiliar to you, do something outrageous: look them up in an English dictionary. (You may also wish to browse Daniels compendium of Latin expressions.) What is the reasoning behind this official purge of common Latin expressions in English? According to the Bournemouth Council, Not everyone knows Latin. Many readers do not have English as their first language so using Latin can be particularly difficult. I agree that not everyone knows Latin. Sadly, its no longer part of the general curriculum. But words and expressions of Latin origin are part of the English language. Some of these Latin borrowings have been more digested than others, but surely status quo is as English as spaghetti. George Orwell warned us this would happen. In his novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, the English of the future is called Newspeak. It is the only language in the world whose vocabulary gets smaller every year One of the characters admires the way every new edition of the dictionary is smaller than the one before it: Its a beautiful thing, the destruction of words. Read the Telegraph article here. Discover the principles of Newspeak here. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Handy Expressions About HandsPeople versus Persons50+ Words That Describe Animals (Including Humans)