Guest guest Posted October 24, 2007 Report Share Posted October 24, 2007 Becky, you give ME a new way to look at certain words I take for granted! LOL! How wonderful! I love the visual of God in Speedos! Heeheehee! Godspeed goes back to Medieval England, I think. A time when travel on the lonely roads through dangerous woods hid robbers waiting in ambush to stop a person to rob them or even kill them (talk about a fear culture!). So a person going on a journey was wished " Godspeed " as in " God speed you quickly to your destination safely! " It's carried over all these years as a parting expression (a bit like Via con Dios) though our woods are mostly cut down now and the roads are anything but lonely. Yet dangers are still present as are those who wish to do harm. So people still say Godspeed. A bit like " God bless you " when you sneeze, going back to an even earlier time when people thought when you sneezed, a demon was trying to get in so they blessed you to stop it. As it turns out, the " demon " may have been germs after all! Strange traditions, no??? Maybe THIS was too much information! LOL! Oh well, you hit on a favorite topic of mine...etymology, the origin of words and phrases. Still a student there, though. Love to you, Becky. Thanks for all the smiles! Valarie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 24, 2007 Report Share Posted October 24, 2007 Jaxson What is the origin of the phrase " God Speed " ? Lewis Joplin II I am guessing that it is a short form of " God speed the plow. " Does anyone know for sure?GOD SPEED THE PLOW -- " God speed the plough, 'a wish for success or prosperity,' was originally a phrase in a 15th-century song sung by ploughmen on Plough Monday, the first Monday after Twelfth Day, which is the end of the Christmas holidays, when farm laborers returned to the plough. On this day ploughmen customarily went from door to door dressed in white and drawing a plough, soliciting 'plough money' to spend in celebration. " Encyclopedia of Word and Phrase Origins " by Robert Hendrickson (Facts on File, New York, 1997). The above is from :http://plateaupress.com.au/wfw/godspeed.htm vjvousden <vjvousden wrote: Becky, you give ME a new way to look at certain words I take for granted! LOL! How wonderful! I love the visual of God in Speedos! Heeheehee! Godspeed goes back to Medieval England, I think. A time when travel on the lonely roads through dangerous woods hid robbers waiting in ambush to stop a person to rob them or even kill them (talk about a fear culture!). So a person going on a journey was wished " Godspeed " as in " God speed you quickly to your destination safely! " It's carried over all these years as a parting expression (a bit like Via con Dios) though our woods are mostly cut down now and the roads are anything but lonely. Yet dangers are still present as are those who wish to do harm. So people still say Godspeed. A bit like " God bless you " when you sneeze, going back to an even earlier time when people thought when you sneezed, a demon was trying to get in so they blessed you to stop it. As it turns out, the " demon " may have been germs after all! Strange traditions, no??? Maybe THIS was too much information! LOL! Oh well, you hit on a favorite topic of mine...etymology, the origin of words and phrases. Still a student there, though. Love to you, Becky. Thanks for all the smiles! Valarie 5, 50, 500, 5000 - Store N number of mails in your inbox. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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