End of ADS-L Digest - 3 Nov 1997 to 4 Nov 1997
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 06 Nov 1997 00:00:14 -0500
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There are 22 messages totalling 530 lines in this issue.

Topics of the day:

 1. "so do me something" - Reply to Beth Simon's Inquiry (3)
 2. "so do me something"
 3. /gIt/ v. /gEt/ for "from the git-go"
 4. reflexives
 5. /gIt/ vs. /gEt/
 6. "it's all good" (2)
 7. "git-go and southernisms"
 8. Garbage In, Garbage Out (fwd)
 9. Guys and Dolls author (2)
 10. RE>Garbage In, Garbage Out (fwd) (2)
 11. Copyediting query (2)
 12. <No subject given>
 13. Nominations for Words of the Year (2)
 14. Bee's Knees
 15. Indian giver

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Date:  Tue, 4 Nov 1997 23:29:26 -0600
From:  Samuel Jones <smjones1[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]FACSTAFF.WISC.EDU>
Subject: Re: "so do me something" - Reply to Beth Simon's Inquiry

>Is anyone familiar with the phrase, "So do me something" used
>as a retort? Know anything about the origin?
>
>thanks,
>beth simon
>assistant professor, linguistics and english
>indiana university purdue university
>simon[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]cvax.ipfw.indiana.edu
______________________________________________________

Nu (a Russian word meaning "well"), so I'll tell you . . .

The form of the expression "So do me something" is fundamentally German;
however, Hochdeutsch (High German) would never employ such expressions as
"Tu mir etwas" or "Also,tu mir etwas" or "Denn, tu mir 'was," because these
expressions mean "Do something TO me" and not "FOR me." The equivalent of
"So, do me something" in Modern High German would be "Also, [bitte] tu etwas
fuer mich [bitte]." Yiddish employs primarily German as its basis, plus a
"bissel"
 Russian, Hebrew, and, so who knows what else? Such a Mischung! (The Yiddish
word "mish," meaning "mixture" or "mix," is also derived from German.) I. too,
suspect that the English is a sort of translation from some not-too kosher
German?

It is quite possible and plausible that Ms. Simon's inquired-about
expression is
indeed derived out of German and comes to English via Yiddish, as is seen in a
number of responses to her inquiry.

Still, we have a bunch of expressions, like

"So, tell me something."
"So, do me a favor?"
"So, sing me a couple more verses."
"So., give me a little more time."
"So, how's by you?"
"So, give me another helping cheesecake?"
"So, you didn't like my challah?"

So, Simon, say maybe I'm a schlump, but don't sue me IF my shtik is shrecklich!



_______________________________
DR. SAMUEL M. JONES
Professor Emertitus
Music & Latin American Studies
University of Wisconsin-Madison
"Pen-y-Bryn" - 122 Shepard Terrace
Madison, WI 53705-3614 USA
_______________________________
EMAIL: smjones1[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]facstaff.wisc.edu
_______________________________
TELEPHONE: 608 + 233-2150
_______________________________