We use it around my neck of the woods all the time. It's used in a light-hearted manner heavily tinged with seriousness. No idea where it's from but I'll bet the good folks at wordorigins would be able to dredge up an answer or two.

http://p066.ezboard.com/bwordoriginsorg

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Oh, and the reason it sounded funny just came to me. Around here it's "a gentleman and a scholar."