"Undecorate" is, or appears to be, a barbarism. ...
Is "undecorate" a "barbarism"?
It seems to depend on whether you approach the question from an 18th Century or more modern perspective.
"The old meaning of neologism is synonymous with «barbarism,» «gallicism» (in English), «anglicism» (in French), and even «archaism». It is opposed to «purism».
The modern, neutral meaning of neologism appears early in the 19th century and, still combatted by Littré in French, gains acceptance towards the end of the century. The expansion of the literary experience by the Romanticists, the Realists, and the Naturalists, as well as the emergence of linguistics as an «objective» science has contributed to this development."
"This older meaning of neologism, and the attitude it reflects, is still alive today" [as we have seen for ourselves in the debate about the 'propriety' of "undecorate"].
Victor E. Hanzeli†
University of Washington
For complete discussion of "neologism", see:
http://www.ditl.info/art/definition.php?term=3101
