Editorial Content for Gobsmacked!: The British Invasion of American English
Contributors
Reviewer (text)
Speak English! It’s a phrase that’s frequently heard when frustration sets in because of a lack of understanding. But which English are we talking about: American English or English English? That is, English that comes from Great Britain?
In an episode of the popular fish-out-of-water series “Ted Lasso,” the eponymous character is asked if it was safe to assume that the prima donna star player who was removed from a game for disciplinary reasons would be back on the pitch for the next match.
“Well, you know what they say when you assume…? You make an arse outta you and me. Yeah? And that right there is another example of how our English and y'all's English sometimes do not jive.”
"I have always been fascinated by etymology --- what it must be like to create a word. Yagoda includes a lot of that background information."
In another episode, Lasso explains some of the differences between the U.S. and G.B. to his visiting family. “Fries are called ‘chips.’ Chips are called ‘crisps.’ And ‘bangers’ aren't great songs, but they do make you feel like dancing 'cause they're so darn tasty.”
Brilliant, which is just one of the words dissected in GOBSMACKED!, the latest from author and retired professor Ben Yagoda, whose MEMOIR: A HISTORY I reviewed back in 2009. The book is an offshoot of his blog, Not One-Off Britishisms (or NOOB), which he describes as “British words and expressions that have got popular in the U.S.”
The words are arranged by general categories. For example, there are chapters on “Historical NOOBs,” “Insults and the Naughty Bits,” and “Sport(s).” The British have a habit of using some words in the plural form, such as “maths” instead of math, while still treating them as singular.
I have always been fascinated by etymology --- what it must be like to create a word. Yagoda includes a lot of that background information. Not surprisingly, a number of such words and expressions come from Shakespeare. But we can’t all be the Bard, which means that the majority has to come from plain blokes like you and me.
One of the drawbacks of this otherwise entertaining and educational volume is Yagoda’s insistence on using statistics to show how the popularity and use of specific words have changed over the years between the two nations. He does this through the use of charts devised from Google Books Ngram, which measures the frequencies of search strings using a count of n-grams found in printed sources published since 1500. Is this linguistics or Sabermetrics? Had Yagoda just relayed stories of the differences in usage, dayenu: it would have been enough.
Finally, a full disclosure: There are times when I will employ British usage in my conversations in an attempt to sound more intelligent or at least more sophisticated. I can’t say that it’s working. Oh, well. Ta-ta (that’s in the book, too).
Teaser
The British love to complain that words and phrases imported from America --- from French fries to Awesome, man! --- are destroying the English language. But what about the influence going the other way? Britishisms have been making their way into the American lexicon for more than 150 years, but the process has accelerated since the turn of the 21st century. From acclaimed writer and language commentator Ben Yagoda, GOBSMACKED! is a witty, entertaining and enlightening account of how and why scores of British words and phrases --- such as one-off, go missing, curate, early days, kerfuffle, easy peasy and cheeky --- have been enthusiastically taken up by Yanks.
Promo
The British love to complain that words and phrases imported from America --- from French fries to Awesome, man! --- are destroying the English language. But what about the influence going the other way? Britishisms have been making their way into the American lexicon for more than 150 years, but the process has accelerated since the turn of the 21st century. From acclaimed writer and language commentator Ben Yagoda, GOBSMACKED! is a witty, entertaining and enlightening account of how and why scores of British words and phrases --- such as one-off, go missing, curate, early days, kerfuffle, easy peasy and cheeky --- have been enthusiastically taken up by Yanks.
About the Book
A spot-on guide to how and why Americans have become so bloody keen on Britishisms --- for good or ill.
The British love to complain that words and phrases imported from America --- from French fries to Awesome, man! --- are destroying the English language. But what about the influence going the other way? Britishisms have been making their way into the American lexicon for more than 150 years, but the process has accelerated since the turn of the 21st century. From acclaimed writer and language commentator Ben Yagoda, GOBSMACKED! is a witty, entertaining and enlightening account of how and why scores of British words and phrases --- such as one-off, go missing, curate, early days, kerfuffle, easy peasy and cheeky --- have been enthusiastically taken up by Yanks.
After tracing Britishisms that entered the American vocabulary in the 19th century and during the world wars, GOBSMACKED! discusses the most-used British terms in America today. It features chapters on the American embrace of British insults and curses, sports terms, and words about food and drinks. The book also explores the American adoption of British spellings, pronunciations and grammar, and cases where Americans have misconstrued British expressions (for example, changing can’t be arsed to can’t be asked) or adopted faux-British usages, like pronouncing divisive as “divissive.” Finally, the book offers some guidance on just how many Britishisms an American can safely adopt without coming off like an arse.
Rigorously researched and documented but written in a light, conversational style, this is a book that general readers and language obsessives will love. Its revealing account of a surprising and underrecognized language revolution might even leave them, well, gobsmacked.
