(01-09-2020, 10:33 PM)Mikey Wrote: I think Nesh is a difficult word to track down it is first written into English language when Irish monks started to catalogue English words in the 9th century, with a meaning of someone susceptible to cold weather. It was pronounced hnesce which is of Latin origin so I believe it possibly has much earlier roots, and might well have been used either during the Roman period or soon after when there was a lot of migration around Europe. In the 16th century Nesch is a Dutch word meaning damp or foolish. So it’s possibly a mutation of Old English and used as a derogatory term for someone being unsuitably dressed for the weather.

If I had to guess I’d say it is probably post roman but, Latin of origin. It might well have been a derogatory term for invaders from Frankia who came from damp lowlands. To mean both damp and foolish they are quite an odd combination so likely to be said in jest of one’s enemy. This is only a guess mind.

(02-09-2020, 08:29 PM)Can the Man Wrote:

(02-09-2020, 05:21 AM)Mikey Wrote: Are you up the Sugar loaf Mamsie?, back when I was in college many moons ago, and working for the council during the summer months, I was sent on an errant to pick up drain plasters for surface dressing and told to meet them on the Sugar loaf

The errand sounds like tartan paint but, it wasn’t there is such a thing!! However I only knew of one Sugar loaf, I later discovered there were two mountains and I was on the wrong one.

Mikey, there is another Sugar Loaf over here in Ireland, it’s part of the Wicklow mountain range

(02-09-2020, 08:44 PM)JJB Wrote:

(01-09-2020, 10:33 PM)Mikey Wrote: I think Nesh is a difficult word to track down it is first written into English language when Irish monks started to catalogue English words in the 9th century, with a meaning of someone susceptible to cold weather. It was pronounced hnesce which is of Latin origin so I believe it possibly has much earlier roots, and might well have been used either during the Roman period or soon after when there was a lot of migration around Europe. In the 16th century Nesch is a Dutch word meaning damp or foolish. So it’s possibly a mutation of Old English and used as a derogatory term for someone being unsuitably dressed for the weather.

If I had to guess I’d say it is probably post roman but, Latin of origin. It might well have been a derogatory term for invaders from Frankia who came from damp lowlands. To mean both damp and foolish they are quite an odd combination so likely to be said in jest of one’s enemy. This is only a guess mind.

See, I told you Mikey would give us a story about nesh.   Thanks  Mikey,  its fascinating.