Such are "Mr. HICKSON's" principal assertions: and when I add, that he
has found out that the German "neu" was in olden time spelt "new," so
that the genitive, "newes," was identical with the old form of the
English word "news;" and that he explains the transformation of a
genitive case of a German adjective into an English substantive by
English ignorance, which he further thinks is exemplified by the Koran
having been called "the Alkoran," in ignorance of "_Al_" meaning "the,"
I have given not only all of his assertions, but also the whole of his
argument.
I now proceed to assert on my part that the word "news" is not "derived
immediately from the German," and "has not been adopted bodily into our
language;" that the English "new" and German "neu" have, however, of
course the same origin, their common root being widely spread in other
languages, as [Greek: neos], Gr.; _norus_, Lat.; _neuf_, Fr., &c.; that
"news" is a noun of plural form and plural meaning, like _goods_,
_riches_, &c.; that its peculiar and frequent use is quite sufficient to
account for its having come to be used as a singular noun ("riches," by
the way, may be prefixed sometimes to a singular verb, as "riches is a
cause of corruption"); that Mr. HICKSON might as well say that "goods"
is derived immediately from "gutes," the genitive of "gut;" and "riches"
from "reiches," the genitive of "reich:" and also that if "_s_" in
"goods," and "_es_" in "riches" are signs of the plural, "we should
have, as the Germans have, either extant or obsolete," the "good," "the
rich," (not that I quite understand this part of "Mr. HICKSON's"
argument): and, lastly, I assert that I believe that _Neues_, in the
phrase "Was giebt's Neues?" is not the genitive, but the nominative
neuter, so that the phrase is to be literally translated "What is there
new?"
As regards the derivation of "News," I wish you had allowed the question
to rest as it stood after the sensible remarks of "A.E.B." (No. 23. p.
369.). Pray excuse me, Sir, for expressing a hope that you will ponder
well before you again allow us to be puzzled on so plain a subject, and
give circulation and your sanction to paradoxes, even though coming from
one so entitled to attention as "Mr. HICKSON."
The early communication between the English and German languages, of
which "Mr. HICKSON" puts forward the derivation of "news" from "neues"
as an instance, may be an interesting and profitable subject of inquiry;
but as I think he has been singularly unfortunate in the one instance,
so I do not think him particularly happy in his other. I see no further
resemblance between Heywood's "Song in praise of his Mistress," and the
early German poem, than what _might_ arise from treatment of the same
and a very common subject.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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