Posted by Alex on December 06, 2001
In Reply to: Marmalade posted by paul taylor on December 04, 2001
My english teacher (when I was 10 or so) told us a hybrid of those two theories - he seemed certain that Marmalade came from Marie Malade, from Mary Queen of Scots who was particularly sickly while queen of France, and was referred to thus. She would eats loads of it and the name stuck, so to speak.
But the mis-translation story reminds me
of how in english, we came to "learn by heart".
According to a different teacher this particular educational method came to england via France, where they made children recite information in class groups over and over again, as if in a choir. They called this learning "en choeur", in a choir as it were. The english journalist who first reported this clearly hadn't brushed up on his WLC (Words Liable to be Confused) and thought he heard them calling it "en coeur" - "by heart".
i know but quite amusing if true...
: : : Could anyone, please, settle a friendly argument between my sister and I? Doubtless, we are both wrong. My sister holds that the word marmalade is derived from Mary Queen of Scots. According to my sister, Mary had a vitamin deficiency and required Industrial doses of Vitamin C. Sivillian Oranges were mashed into a pulp/preserve and exported to her in Scotland. Thus, according to my sister, the preserve was named "Mary My Lady". Or, when abbreviated ,marmalade´. For me, this appears to be a strange mixture of French and English. Moreover, it appears, to me, a somewhat excessive procedure for the Spanish to go through for one person even though, of course, they had a vested interest in her health as she was a possible Catholic heir to the English throne. When My sister furnished me with this "information" yesterday I said nothing but it was bugging me that there was something not quite right about the linguistical hybrid. In contrast, my explanation for the word is simple (and this could be wrong because I am just guessing). As you know the mortality rate for sailors in the 15thC was very high. Scurvy was of course the main cause of death. Marmalade is a pickle really. A preservative. A I feel that marmalade (like Limes and subsequently..Limey) may have been utillised as a precaution, by sailors, against scurvy. To me the word marmalade in its etymological context is simple Mar malade. Literal translation Sea Sickness. If anyone can elaborate on either of these points I would be eternally grateful. I live in Spain and my friends and I, are always looking for the roots of words as many English words have thier roots in Latin. In addition to this, we have competitions, while drinking our Mañana Cafe con leche, to try and see who can come up with the most useless information. This one is the King of useless info non?
: : Mais oui. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, "marmalade" comes from Portuguese "marmelada," which comes from "marmelo," quince. There was a Latin precursor, "melimelum," honey-apple. The first use of the word recorded in the OED is dated 1524. I am so glad the rest of your family didn't all offer their hypotheses.