Finding additional information other than the miniscule amount of knowledge previously obtained from family members on both the meaning of my current last name, Kosur, and my mother's maiden name, Goller, proved extremely difficult. Kosur is a shortening of the Polish surname Kosuralski while Goller is of German descent, both of which I already aware. However, I was able to uncover the etymology of Irish, my maternal grandmother's maiden name.
Irish, or the variation of Ireland, originated as an English surname evolving from the place source, last names created using the location of a person. Initially used in a condescending manner by locals for foreigners emigrating from Ireland, Irish simply means a person originally from Ireland.
My great, great grandfather, Thomas Driver Irish, who was his brother's first mate, and his wife, Mary Lauther Irish, emigrated to the United States from Ireland in the 1880's after sailing for two years on my great, great grandfather's brother's merchant ship. The ship was traveling to Australia with my great, great grandmother on her way to visit relatives. She and my great, great grandfather fell in love and after ten days at port in Australia were married.
Following their two years of sea travel and the first of their first child during a terrible storm in which my great, great grandmother fell off her bunk several times during labor, the family settled in LeRoy, Illinois near some of my great, great grandfather's cousins. He tried farming to support the family but ended up as a merchant in a little store in over which they lived in Glen Avon, Illinois where they resided until retiring to Bloomington, Illinois where the Irish couple both died.
© Rock Pickle Publishing
English in the Germanic family
The earliest period of English was Sanskrit called 'Anglo-Saxon', and the term may still be used: but 'Old English' has tended to replace it with most scholars. But both terms have their drawbacks from the point of view of strict accuracy.
Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon) is an early form of the English language that was spoken in parts of what is now England and southern Scotland between the mid-fifth century and the mid-twelfth century. It is a West Germanic language and therefore is similar to Old Frisian and Old Saxon. It is also quite similar to Old Norse (and by extension, to modern Icelandic).
Old English was not static, and its usage covered a period of approximately 750 years - from the Anglo-Saxon migrations which created England in the fifth century to some time after the Norman invasion of 1066, after which the language underwent a major and dramatic transition. During this early period it assimilated some aspects of the languages with which it came in contact, such as the Celtic languages and the two dialects of Old Norse from the invading Norsemen, who were occupying and controlling the Danelaw in northern and eastern England.
According to Bede, and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle which here is based largely on his early 8th century work, the tribes which came to settle forcibly and overrun most of Romanized Britain in the 5th and 6th centuries were from parts of Northern Germany and were Angles, Saxons and Jutes.
These brought with them what is called a 'Low German' type of 1, or rather one which was transplanted to England too early to be affected by the 'High German' change of consonants (8th c.) which has made the distinction between the speakers of High German (most Germans and Austrians) and those of Low German (Dutch, Flemish, Frisian, some German dialects in rural areas, and English). A word like English BETTER, which substantially retains today the root sounds it had among the Anglo-Saxons, became by the High German consonant shift the German BESSER, the other Low German dialects agreeing with English.
If this topic interests you, we suggest to learn more about history of English langage.
Old English (also called Anglo-Saxon) is an early form of the English language that was spoken in parts of what is now England and southern Scotland between the mid-fifth century and the mid-twelfth century. It is a West Germanic language and therefore is similar to Old Frisian and Old Saxon. It is also quite similar to Old Norse (and by extension, to modern Icelandic).
Old English was not static, and its usage covered a period of approximately 750 years - from the Anglo-Saxon migrations which created England in the fifth century to some time after the Norman invasion of 1066, after which the language underwent a major and dramatic transition. During this early period it assimilated some aspects of the languages with which it came in contact, such as the Celtic languages and the two dialects of Old Norse from the invading Norsemen, who were occupying and controlling the Danelaw in northern and eastern England.
According to Bede, and the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle which here is based largely on his early 8th century work, the tribes which came to settle forcibly and overrun most of Romanized Britain in the 5th and 6th centuries were from parts of Northern Germany and were Angles, Saxons and Jutes.
These brought with them what is called a 'Low German' type of 1, or rather one which was transplanted to England too early to be affected by the 'High German' change of consonants (8th c.) which has made the distinction between the speakers of High German (most Germans and Austrians) and those of Low German (Dutch, Flemish, Frisian, some German dialects in rural areas, and English). A word like English BETTER, which substantially retains today the root sounds it had among the Anglo-Saxons, became by the High German consonant shift the German BESSER, the other Low German dialects agreeing with English.
If this topic interests you, we suggest to learn more about history of English langage.
You Say Pasta, We Say Noodle
It's too soon to declare peace in the world's pasta wars. But the combatants finally sat down together at the table. U.S. pasta-makers have been angered over European Union subsidies, which sometimes made Italian pasta cheaper than American brands on U.S. grocery shelves.
A few months ago, the U.S. International Trade Commission decided there was merit to American pastamakers' complaints about being hurt by Italian and Turkish imports. No settlement has been reached yet.
Italy's Menconi was quick to recall how national pride was pricked earlier this year by a claim from some U.S. experts that pasta could be bad for some people, especially the overweight. Focusing on the common goal of increasing pasta consumption, savvy spaghetti sellers aren't overlooking any market.
A few months ago, the U.S. International Trade Commission decided there was merit to American pastamakers' complaints about being hurt by Italian and Turkish imports. No settlement has been reached yet.
Italy's Menconi was quick to recall how national pride was pricked earlier this year by a claim from some U.S. experts that pasta could be bad for some people, especially the overweight. Focusing on the common goal of increasing pasta consumption, savvy spaghetti sellers aren't overlooking any market.
Scotland
It is one of those places where civilization has not tramped all before it. Scotland has uniqely combined the untouched beauty of nature with the kind of facilities that guarantee comfort.
Your impressions from Scotland very much depend on you, on how open you are to new cultures and traditions of this country. Start your trip with the cities and then go deep to the Highlands.
Step by step you will be unweiling the quiet magic of this miraculous place and falling in love with its unforgettable authenticity, which gets smoothly with modernity. Tartan is no longer just an echo from the past. Any bank or football team has its own tartan. Any local family can have a tartan by just registering it at the Scottish tartan Society.
And it is not only fashion that reflects a changing consciousness. Over the last 10-15 years Scots seem to have become more conscious of their national identity, just as we Ukrainians have. They do not only debate their more independent status, but wear kilts more often - for weddings and for parties, even for work. They feel proud and comfortable on these double-pleated skirts, even when they have to pay something in the region on of 600 USD for a full outfit.
Your impressions from Scotland very much depend on you, on how open you are to new cultures and traditions of this country. Start your trip with the cities and then go deep to the Highlands.
Step by step you will be unweiling the quiet magic of this miraculous place and falling in love with its unforgettable authenticity, which gets smoothly with modernity. Tartan is no longer just an echo from the past. Any bank or football team has its own tartan. Any local family can have a tartan by just registering it at the Scottish tartan Society.
And it is not only fashion that reflects a changing consciousness. Over the last 10-15 years Scots seem to have become more conscious of their national identity, just as we Ukrainians have. They do not only debate their more independent status, but wear kilts more often - for weddings and for parties, even for work. They feel proud and comfortable on these double-pleated skirts, even when they have to pay something in the region on of 600 USD for a full outfit.
