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Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 1
stranger
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stranger
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 1 |
Recently, I got into a discussion with someone about the origin of the word bistro. The person that I was talking to attributed the origin of the word to the word for quick Russian, when the Russians went to French cafes in Paris after the defeat of Napoleon. However, somewhere in my reading I have come across the notion that this story is apocryphal, but I can never seem to remember the source of this idea. Does anyone have any thoughts about the origin of the word bistro?
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511 |
Hi, Mike, and welcome! I've heard that story, too, but it seems it is a valid old French word, bistrôt, meaning tavern. Hang out and await the experts. :-)
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Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 7,210
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 7,210 |
welcome, Mike. etymyonline has this to say: bistro
1922, from Fr. bistro (1884), originally Parisian slang for "little wineshop or restaurant," of unknown origin. Commonly said to be from Russian bee-stra "quickly," picked up during the Allied occupation of Paris in 1815 after the defeat of Napoleon; but this, however quaint, is unlikely. Another guess is that it is from bistraud "a little shepherd," a word of the Poitou dialect, from biste "goat."http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=bistro
formerly known as etaoin...
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Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 6,511 |
... and the venerable Dr Bill quotes Michael Quinion, as well:
>>Here's all Quinion had to say:
Bistro
It’s widely believed that bistro is from a Russian word meaning hurry up. It’s not true.
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Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 2,788
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 2,788 |
My nominee for the origin of bistro is that it is a shortened form of bistrouille -- a mixture of coffee and brandy which was likely served in the places, hence the name for the place.
Welcome, Landau, I think you're gonna like it here.
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803 |
the origin of bistro is that it is a shortened form of bistrouille
Or either the other way round, one.
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