Re: [tied] Re: Nominative: A hybrid view

At 4:57:13 AM on Wednesday, June 4, 2003, tgpedersen wrote:

> Its use: cf 'them thar hills', Sw 'dom där bergen' (I
> wonder if the US expression might have Swedish substrate,
> another candidate would be Sw. 'fånig' "silly, stupid" ->
> Am. Eng. 'phoney')

According to AHD, <phon(e)y> is an alteration of <fawney>
'gilt brass ring used by swindlers', from Irish <fáinne> 'a
ring' (also in OIr); according to M-W on-line the OIr is
from OIr <ánne> 'a ring', possibly cognate with Lat <anus>.

Brian