--- In
cybalist@yahoogroups.com, Rick McCallister <gabaroo6958@...> wrote:
>
> You missed hiccough /hIk@.../, sometimes spelled hiccup
>
The OED has this to say about that:
"Hiccup, sb. Forms: A. 16th cent. hicke up, hikup, 16th-17th hickop,
17th hickhop, hecup, 17th-18th hiccop, 17th-19th hickup, hick-up, 17th
hiccup; B. 17th hiccough. See also HICKET, HICKOCK [<Hickop, hickup>,
appears, from its date, to be a variation of the earlier <hickock>,
HICKET q.v. <Hiccough> was a later spelling, app. under the erroneous
impression that the second syllable was <cough>, which has not
affected the received pronunciation, and ought to be abandoned as a
mere error.]"
"Hicket, sb. Obs. Forms: 16th hickot, hyckot, 16th-17th hicket, 17th
hicquet, hiquet, hickett, hycket. [One of the earlier forms of
<hiccup>, the other being <hickock>, both app. with a dim. formative
<-et, -ock>. The echoic stem <hick> appears also in MDu. <hick>, Du.
<hik>, LG <hick>, Da. <hik>, Sw. <hicka> hiccup, M.Du. <hicken>, Du.
<hikken>, Da. <hicke>, Sw. <hicka> to hiccup; also Bret. <hok, hik>
(Littré), F. <hoquet> (15th cent.), Walloon <hikéte>, med. Lat.
<hoquetus>(Du Cange), hiccup, F. <hoqueter> (12th cent. in
Hatz.-Darm.) to hiccup. The Eng. <hicket> corresponds in formation to
the Fr., and is identical with the Walloon. Assuming this to be the
earliest form, we haave the series <hicket, hickot, hickock, hickop,
hiccup(hiccough).] Early form of HICCUP sb."
"Hickock, sb. Obs. Forms: A. 16th hyckock, 17th hickock, hickcock,
hiccock, hicock, hick-hock, (hick-hoe). B. 16th hitchcock, hytchcoke,
(hitchcough), hichcoke, hichkoke, hichecock, hichecocke. [A parallel
form to HICKET, the difference being either that of two diminutive
suffixes, or merely phonetic, as in the later <hickop, hiccup>. The
explaination of the variant form in <hich-, hitch-> is not clear; it
is perh. to be sought in the dial. equivalence of <ch> and <k>] An
earlier form of HICCUP sb."
So we see the apparent origin of Alfred Hitchcock's last name.
Considerably less ennobling than one would hope for someone of his
stature, I would say.
Andrew