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From: iannucci@sjuvax.UUCP (iannucci)
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Subject: Re: The word "won't".
Message-ID: <1226@sjuvax.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 31-Jul-85 21:15:20 EDT
Article-I.D.: sjuvax.1226
Posted: Wed Jul 31 21:15:20 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 3-Aug-85 01:46:18 EDT
References: <565@rtech.UUCP> <1216@sjuvax.UUCP> <763@ptsfa.UUCP>
Reply-To: iannucci@sjuvax.UUCP (iannucci)
Distribution: net
Organization: St. Joseph's University, Phila. PA.
Lines: 22
Summary: 

In article <763@ptsfa.UUCP> rob@ptsfa.UUCP (Rob Bernardo) writes:
>>> Does anyone know how the contraction for "will not" came to be "won't"?
>>> "Willn't" seems more logical.
>>        The word 'will' comes from the German verb 'wollen', meaning to want.
>>...  My best guess is that the 'o' in 'wollen' carried over into the English 
>>     contraction.
 
> English 'will' does not COME from German 'wollen'. They both come from
> the same Germanic verb 'welon'. 

         As a matter of fact, wollen is indeed one of the words which contrib-
uted to the existence of the English 'will'.  'Wellen' (the correct spelling)
is merely one of the older forms of the word 'wollen'. I got this information
from the OED, a source I think you'd be foolish to contest. A "normal" diction-
ary that I checked cited the Old English 'wyllen', another one of the many 
listed in the OED. Perhaps I was a bit overzealous in my initial claim, but 
you will note that I admitted in the end to being unsure.
-- 
If I could walk THAT way... 

Dave Iannucci @ St. Joseph's University, Philadelphia [40 00' N 75 15' W]
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