Archaism
This article possibly contains original research. (March 2009) |
In
A distinction between archaic and obsolete words and
Archaisms can either be used deliberately (to achieve a specific effect) or as part of a specific
An outdated form of language is called archaic. In contrast, a language or dialect that contains many archaic traits (archaisms) relative to closely related languages or dialects spoken at the same time is called
Usage
Archaisms are most frequently encountered in history, poetry, fantasy literature, law, philosophy, science, technology, geography and ritual writing and speech. Archaisms are kept alive by these ritual and literary uses and by the study of older literature. Should they remain recognised, they can potentially be revived.
Because they are things of continual discovery and re-invention, science and technology have historically generated forms of speech and writing which have dated and fallen into disuse relatively quickly. However, the emotional associations of certain words have kept them alive, for example the archaic 'wireless' rather than 'radio' for a generation of British citizens who lived through the
A similar desire to evoke a former age means that archaic place names are frequently used in circumstances where doing so conveys a political or emotional subtext, or when the official new name is not recognised by all (for example: 'Madras' rather than 'Chennai'). So, a restaurant seeking to conjure up historic associations might prefer to call itself Old Bombay or refer to Persian cuisine in preference to using the newer place name. A notable contemporary example is the airline Cathay Pacific, which uses the archaic Cathay for China.
Archaisms are frequently misunderstood, leading to changes in usage. One example is the phrase "odd man out", which originally came from the phrase "to find the odd man out", where the verb "to find out" has been split by its object "the odd man", meaning the item which does not fit. The object + split verb has been reinterpreted as a noun + adjective, such that "out" describes the man rather than any verb.
The
Examples
A type of archaism is the use of
Though thou hast ever so many counsellors, yet do not forsake the counsel of thy own soul.[2]
- — English proverb
Today me, tomorrow thee.[3]
- — English proverb
That is: today this happens to me, but tomorrow to you.
To thine own self be true.[4]
- —William Shakespeare
Archaisms often linger in proverbs, "falling easier on the tongue",[5] and employing two of the four fundamental rhetorical effects, permutation (immutatio) and addition (adiectio).[6]
See also
- Anachronism
- Fossil word
- Historical linguistics
- Legal English
- Linguistic conservatism
- List of alternative country names
- List of archaic technological nomenclature
- Neologism
- Thou
- Ye olde
References
- ISBN 978-0-19-280637-6. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ISBN 0415096243.
- ISBN 0415096243.
- ^ Polonius, Hamlet, scene III
- ISBN 978-3-7965-1949-9. Retrieved 4 September 2013.
- ^ "АРХАИКА". Медиаэнциклопедия ИЗО.
External links
- Archaism entry in the UCLA Encyclopedia of Egyptology