Gibberish

Gibberish is the derogatory term for a confused way of speaking, for an incomprehensible mixture of several languages ​​or an incomprehensible foreign language.

Etymology

The etymology of the incurred before the 16th century the word is ambiguous. The second word part welsch is an old German name for the Romance languages ​​and their speakers, which can be found in geographical terms such as Welsch Switzerland, Wallonia, Wallachia or Wales. For the first part of word following derivations are:

  • According to the technical dictionaries ( Kluge, compatriot, Wolf) the word of kaudern comes "Between Trading, brokering ," so that originally the " Nova " ( Romance) Italian merchants and money changers ( cf. fish species: the welschen huckster, talk jargon Lamparter, d h Lombards ) or more generally, the secret language ( slang ) traveling salesman and peddlers would be meant. The dictionary of the Brothers Grimm also recorded onomatopoeic kaudern ( to chop the rumbling of the Tauber, küttern from the tap, as well as the Kodderschnauze ) with the meanings " like a turkey gobble " and " babble, speak incomprehensible".
  • Luther was referring the word to the Romansh ( the Chauderwelschen or Chur Wallen bald glosses ) so that it originally means " Welsh language of the inhabitants of Chur in Graubünden, Chur Welsch, Chur - Nova " and would have taken the general meaning " unintelligible language". According to Duden dictionary of origin is the connection to Churchill that the place name is called in the Tirolean Kauer and hence the word might actually mean Churromanisch.
  • The first part of the word goes back to Frühneuhochdeutsch Kuder, tow '. First, the gibberish should then have been the derogatory term for the Italian flax and Werghändler.
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