An English Speaker's Comment

After reading Svetlana Zaskoka’s interesting piece on differences in relationship terminology, I would like to point out a few things.

One of the most confusing things to me as an English teacher and resident in Russia for many years is my friends and students speaking to me of their “brothers” or “sisters” when they’ve told me before that they are “only children”. How they acquired siblings overnight totally amazes me! Then, upon questioning them further, I discover that they are referring to a cousin instead.

After several years of wrestling with this problem I assumed that this distortion of relationships came about because of small families (the desire for real brothers and sisters) and / or families living in close proximity as the children grow up together. I never suspected that it was because speakers of English overuse the word “cousin” to mean laterally-related kin. In my family, my mother was closer to several second-cousins (two brothers had married two sisters) than she was to her own two physical sisters, but she would never call them “sisters”. In fact, “Cuz” is a very affectionate way of referring to a cousin.

One other point here, why is it necessary to have a collective term for “nieces and nephews” when we only have the formal “siblings” to refer to the collective of brothers and sisters?

By Erin Bouma

Unit 2

Computer Dating Bureau

If you join a computer dating service, you will have to fill out this kind of form.

Computer Dating Information Form   Please fill in the questions below: 1. Age ____________ 4. Sex ______________ 2. Height __________ 5. Hair colour ________ 3. Weight __________ 6. Languages ________ Qualities 7. The qualities I would like in a date are: (check if appropriate) beauty humоur generosity sexiness intelligence seriousness kindness energy honesty success mystery sympathy 8. I feel most comfortable with people who are: athletic articulate peaceful successful intellectual protective exciting fun-loving romantic artistic ambitious religious 9. The occupations I am most interested in are: medical fine arts engineering social work legal business science religion education sports home economics other 10. My favorite activities are: movies dancing politics partying Т .V. music religious cooking sports reading talking painting 11. People think that I am: shy pessimistic gullible talented strong brave attractive successful reliable intellectual amusing optimistic tough tactful argumentative a loner 12. I prefer to date someone who is: my age slightly younger much younger slightly older much older   Mail this form, with $5.00 and a self-addressed return envelope, to COMPUTER CUPID. 2 Lovers Lane. Happytown, California. We will send you the names and addresses of three perfect dates!

Unit 3

How Did Weddings Start?

Marriage, as a custom, goes back to the very earliest history of man. It has passed through three stages. The first was marriage by capture. Primitive man simply stole the woman he wanted for his wife.

Then came marriage by contract or purchase. A bride was bought by a man. Finally came the marriage based on mutual love. But even today we still have traces of the first two stages. “Giving the bride away” is a relic of the time when the bride was really sold. The “best man” at weddings today probably goes back to the strong-armed warrior who helped primitive man carry off his captured bride. And the honeymoon itself symbolises the period during which the bridegroom was forced to hide his captured bride until her kinsmen grew tired of searching for her!

Today we have “weddings” without realising that this very word goes back to one of the early stages of marriage. Among the Anglo-Saxons the “wed” was the money, horses, or cattle which the groom gave as security and as a pledge to prove his purchase of the bride from her father.

Of course, when it comes to wedding customs, most of them can be traced back to ancient meanings which have long been forgotten. For example, the “something blue” which brides wear is borrowed from ancient Israel. In those times brides were told to wear a ribbon of blue on the borders of their garments because blue was the colour of purity, love, and fidelity.

When we ask, Who giveth this woman to this man? we are going back to the times when a bride was actually purchased. It is believed that the custom of having bridesmaids goes back to Roman times when there had to be ten witnesses at the solemn marriage ceremony.

Why do we tie shoes on the back of newly weds’ cars? It is believed that this goes back to the custom of exchanging or giving away of shoes to indicate that authority had been exchanged. So the shoe suggests that now the husband rather than the father has authority over the bride.