Wordsmith Talk		About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us

Active Topics

Active Posts

Unanswered Posts

Search

Advanced

You are not logged in. [Log In] Wordsmith Talk » Forums » (Old) Weekly themes. (have been consolidated into a single forum above) » Words with unusual etymologies » incunabula Register User    Forum List        Calendar     Active Topics     Search     FAQ

Topic Options #84959 - 10/27/02 04:18 PM incunabula Buffalo Shrdlu Carpal Tunnel Registered: 06/24/02 Posts: 6690 Loc: Vermont I ran across this word looking up volvelle, and was surprised at the etymology. from m-w: Main Entry: in.cu.nab.u.lum Pronunciation: "in-ky&-'na-by&-l&m, "i[ng]- Function: noun Etymology: New Latin, from Latin incunabula, plural, bands holding the baby in a cradle, from in- + cunae cradle Date: circa 1859 Inflected Form(s): plural in.cu.nab.u.la /-l&/ 1 : a book printed before 1501 2 : a work of art or of industry of an early period in searching the board(didn't want to yart), the only references were to a member named incunabula back in early 2001... Top #84960 - 10/27/02 05:38 PM Re: incunabula wwh Carpal Tunnel Registered: 01/18/01 Posts: 13858 Dear etaoin: I never heard the etymology rererring to bands that hold child in a cradle. I always thought the ending was just a diminutive. I found one site that mentioned Thomas DeQuincy, but I couldn't find anything that suggested he invented the term. Top #84961 - 10/27/02 06:05 PM Re: incunabula Buffalo Shrdlu Carpal Tunnel Registered: 06/24/02 Posts: 6690 Loc: Vermont yeah, the etymology to the meaning just seems to be a bit of a stretch! I guess cradle, early learning, etc, but it's weak... Top #84962 - 10/27/02 06:41 PM Re: incunabula wwh Carpal Tunnel Registered: 01/18/01 Posts: 13858 Dear etaoin: I had a bit of luck. A search turned up words "swaddling clothes" and search for Incunabula swaddling clothes thurned up this: ncunabula (Latin: swaddling clothes) Books printed before the end of the year 1500. The term was first used in reference to printing by Bernard von Mallinckrodt, dean of Münster cathedral, in De ortu et progressu typographicae (Cologne, 1639), a bicentenary celebration of Gutenberg's invention. The author describes the period up to 1500 as prima typographicae incunabula (the time when printing was in swaddling clothes), a phrase that other writers soon copied. In the eighteenth century the word incunabula alone began to be applied to the products of early printing. The singular form incunabulum, now often anglicized or gallicized to incunable, is used to refer to a single book from this period. The German equivalent is Wiegendruck (cradle-book). The choice of the year 1500 as the end of the first period suggests a clear break in the development of printing, an implication that is not confirmed by the work produced early in the sixteenth century. Top #84963 - 10/27/02 07:00 PM Re: incunabula Buffalo Shrdlu Carpal Tunnel Registered: 06/24/02 Posts: 6690 Loc: Vermont that's great, Bill! thanks for that information. it does make sense then... Top Previous Topic Index Next Topic Preview Hop to: General Topics ------   Information and announcements   Q&A about words   Wordplay and fun   Words and languages in schools   Miscellany   Weekly Themes   Looking for (writers, speakers, ...) (Old) Weekly themes. (have been consolidated into a single forum above) ------   Words from medicine   Beheading words   Meta-words   Words from classical mythology   Animal Safari   Words with unusual etymologies   Eponyms or words derived from people's names.   Loanwords from German   English as a global language Print Topic Switch to Threaded Mode View profile Send a PM View homepage Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM View homepage Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM Add to your Watched Users View posts View profile Send a PM View homepage Add to your Watched Users View posts Forum Stats 7256 Members 16 Forums 12812 Topics 189755 Posts Max Online: 853 @ 10/23/07 11:39 AM Who's Online 1 registered (Buffalo Shrdlu), 12 Guests and 28 Spiders online. Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod Newest Members Alan, jincy crow, aml, Goodspeaker, W1343 7256 Registered Users Top Posters wwh 13858 Faldage 12534 Jackie 10393 tsuwm 9577 Buffalo Shrdlu 6690 AnnaStrophic 6489 Wordwind 6296 of troy 5400 maverick 4683 WhitmanO'Neill 4189 March Su M Tu W Th F Sa 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Board Rules · Mark all read Default StyleBlackNTanDrabGooG_v2infopopSlatesnowsunny_dropshadowthebluesTouch_Of_Greyubbthreadsubbthreads-dark Contact Us · Wordsmith Talk · Top

Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 2010 Wordsmith.org