Klarinet Archive - Posting 000288.txt from 2000/11

From: "redcedar" <redcedar@-----.au>
Subj: RE: Re: [kl] gotten
Date: Sun, 5 Nov 2000 15:25:36 -0500

In a message dated 5/11/00 2:30:10 pm, tony-wakefield wrote:

<<is "gotten" also a word which travelled across to the New
World, i.e. ancient English?
(I have my doubts). I would hazard a guess that it is a pure American
corruption.>>

I used to think this was an American corruption, until I found that the
nineteenth century English novelist, Anthony Trollope, often used the word
"gotten" in his writing eg. in Framley Parsonage (1861), p. 34, Penguin
edition. However, in that same book, Trollope also said that "we sent our
felons to Australia" (p. 62), so perhaps you shouldn't accept my word on
this. Then again, the OED cites the word as having derived from "begotten"
(1637)

Michael O'Neile

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