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From: jcp@osiris.UUCP (Jody Patilla)
Newsgroups: net.women,net.nlang
Subject: Re: \"Guys\" is to \"<?>\" as ...
Message-ID: <527@osiris.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 19-Sep-85 09:33:46 EDT
Article-I.D.: osiris.527
Posted: Thu Sep 19 09:33:46 1985
Date-Received: Sun, 22-Sep-85 13:32:05 EDT
References: <305@decwrl.UUCP> <2@ubc-cs.UUCP>
Organization: Johns Hopkins Hospital
Lines: 19
Xref: linus net.women:6953 net.nlang:3259

>      What we seem to need is a word with similar origins as "guy": i.e. a
> short, one-syllable, slightly old-fashioned woman's name.

	"Guy" didn't always mean a casual term for 'man'. It comes originally
from the British custom of making dummies ("guys") to use in hanging Guy 
Fawkes in effigy on Guy Fawkes Day. Boys raised money for fireworks and such
by putting their "guys" out on street corners and soliciting donations
("penny for the guy?"). (If I'm wrong on the details here, someone with British
experience please come to my rescue) To refer to someone as a guy was somehwat
derogatory at one time. I recall seeing a usage in "Little Women", in the 
scene where Meg is staying with wealthy friends who dress her all up for a
party. An older gentleman sees her and comments that "now they've made an
awful guy of her". So it wasn't necessarily sex-specific in that case. I'd
be interested in other references folks are familiar with.

-- 
jcpatilla

"At night, the ice weasels come."


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