Rescuing British English

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Len said:
Wait, what is 'British English' anyway? Scots, Welsh, Northern Irish... hell, even separate cities within England proper (or within the city of London itself!) can't seem to agree on the same terms or verbiage in daily speech.

Furthermore, in some instances "American English" is more traditionally proper than modern 'British English'. For example, the use of the 'ize' vs 'ise' suffix in words such as agonize/agonise, criticize/criticise, civilize/civilise, etc. The latter versions of these words are British degenerations confused and invented in the 20th century. In centuries prior (going back to Shakespeare even) within Britain, and in current day America, the correct and proper 'ize' suffix is still utilized, and even linguistic authorities at Oxford have acknowledged this fact.

http://metadyne.co.uk/ize.html

So the next time an Englishman may ponder over the proper use of their own language, they might consider consulting an American or Scotsman first... ;)
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At no point did I say, or imply, that British English was purer or superior to American English, my gripe is about American terminology replacing perfectly good terms we already have.
Take the word pants for example, the American usage is closer to the original pantaloons than ours. But if I heard a British person saying he'd spilt coffee on his pants, I'd be wondering why he wasn't wearing any trousers at the time.
 
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Boru62 said:
As if I would intentionally do such a thing Iain. ;) It was something my son said which sparked me off, he said the second season of a certain TV programme was starting. Season? I think he meant series.:mad:
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I think a season is the number of episodes a show ran that year. For example, the TV series Friends had 10 seasons and a total of 236 episodes. Just a guess.
 
donnie_arko said:
I'm guilty of using the word 'puck' instead of cake, and tuck as well but I am pleased to be correct.

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I'd like to add a few more words that need to be reclaimed/used instead.

"Fag" a colloquial term for a cigarette, not an insult for a homosexual.

Many people seem to use the word "Season" to describe a duration of a television programme, the correct term is "Series".

Also "Apartment" instead of "Flat".

"Biscuit" is not some kind of staple in Southern Cuisine but a flat disc of goodness often found in a cylindrical tube with the word 'McVities' on the side (other brands are available); not all Biscuits are Cookies - the only biscuits that are cookies are ones with chocolate chips (or raisins), calling a Hob Nob or a Digestive 'A Cookie' is an abomination to the English language, it's a biscuit ffs.
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I once got hit in the head with a hockey puck and have never been quite the same.
 
Boru62 said:
Take the word pants for example, the American usage is closer to the original pantaloons than ours. But if I heard a British person saying he'd spilt coffee on his pants, I'd be wondering why he wasn't wearing any trousers at the time.
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See, there you go again, blaming 'Americanisms' for what is essentially British... You don't seem to be aware that the word 'pants' was actually coined in Britain in the 1700's, and as such, is another example of how in many cases Americans are often more British than the Brits...

 
Boru62 said:
At no point did I say, or imply, that British English was purer or superior to American English, my gripe is about American terminology replacing perfectly good terms we already have.
Take the word pants for example, the American usage is closer to the original pantaloons than ours. But if I heard a British person saying he'd spilt coffee on his pants, I'd be wondering why he wasn't wearing any trousers at the time.
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That English coffee was so bad I shat my pants, and I was wearing my best suit pants at the time. Bummer!
 
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Len said:
See, there you go again, blaming 'Americanisms' for what is essentially British... You don't seem to be aware that the word 'pants' was actually coined in Britain in the 1700's, and as such, is another example of how in many cases Americans are often more British than the Brits...

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Are you deliberately missing the nuances of my point? I am not applying any blame, nor saying one language is correct.
My complaint is that modern British is being supplanted with American terminology when we have adequate terms of our own. Soccer was a British term but we have replaced it with football, because Americans continue to use the term soccer does not make them more correct.
It's not just American terms, the German Uber and Zeitgeist have become common usage when there was no need.
 
Boru62 said:
Are you deliberately missing the nuances of my point? I am not applying any blame, nor saying one language is correct.
My complaint is that modern British is being supplanted with American terminology when we have adequate terms of our own. Soccer was a British term but we have replaced it with football, because Americans continue to use the term soccer does not make them more correct.
It's not just American terms, the German Uber and Zeitgeist have become common usage when there was no need.
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No, I just don't think your are very consistent or clear in your reasoning.

You seem to be upset that common terms in Britain are sometimes replaced or changed. It seems to be okay with you if it was done way back when, as long as it isn't done now.

Why, in Britain, is football more defendable than soccer, and trousers more sensible than pants? Do you find it ironic that your great, great grandfather, if he was of the same attitude as you over language change would very likely disagree with you over those very same words? :D
 
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William Dobson said:
Try telling that to the creators of the series Episodes. Actually, you are partially right.
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We are both right depending on which country we are from.
The Mexicans and the Spanish are both right in their use of the word tortilla, but if a Spaniard told me she was going to make a tortilla and gave me a flat bread, disappointment wouldn't be an adequate term.
 
Len said:
No, I just don't think your are very consistent or clear in your reasoning.

You seem to be upset that common terms in Britain are sometimes replaced or changed. It seems to be okay with you if it was done way back when, as long as it isn't done now.

Why, in Britain, is football more defendable than soccer, and trousers more sensical than pants? Do you find it ironic that your great, great grandfather, if he was of the same attitude as you over language change would very likely disagree with you over those very same words? :D
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I am being consistent, you're (deliberately) missing the point. Slow natural change is one thing, mass supplantation is another.
 
Boru62 said:
I am being consistent, you're (deliberately) missing the point. Slow natural change is one thing, mass supplantation is another.
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I think I have the point...

If you ever feel the need to 'rescue' traditional 'British English' you need look no further for help than from your cousins across the pond. ;)
 
For us not english/american natives most of those differences are hard to spot. If you don't use english every day you'll probably not be so much in to that and it'll all sound the same.
I learned British english in school, yet most things I watch, hear and read are american.
So I apologize for using "awesome", "truck", "ass" etc..

That being said, many languages of the world use "americanisms" or foreign slang terms instead of using an own word. With use of internet and social media especially.
"Like" being one example.

Sent from my LG-D855 using Tapatalk
 
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