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tasmanian_bibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
The King James Bible and the English Language
It’s been 400 years since the King James Bible was published in 1611, and it is often referred to as a source of great influence on the English language. Consider these commonly used phrases: ‘A fly in the ointment’, ’How are the mighty fallen’, ‘Let there be light’, ‘New wine in old bottles ‘, ‘The salt of the earth’, and ‘The skin of one’s teeth’. Each of these phrases owes its popularity to the King James Bible.
But is it true that no book has had a greater influence on the English language? To answer this question, David Crystal, a professor of linguistics, has sifted through the King James Bible and compared it to six earlier translations. While acknowledging that the King James Bible owes much to those earlier translations – especially those by Wycliffe (14th century) and Tyndale (16th century) there are also some key revisions. Consider the impact of ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’ with Wycliffe’s ‘Am I the keeper of my brother?’
English has changed in the past 400 years and while (most of us at least) no longer use the exact same language of the King James Bible, David Crystal has looked at idiom rather than quotation to demonstrate its influence. David Crystal has counted 257 phrases or words that are now idiomatic, and they are each listed and discussed in the book. While only 18 of these idioms take the exact form shown in the King James Bible, 7 exact forms come from other translations.
Interestingly, in 37 cases the King James antecedent has been rewritten while in the other 196 cases, the form of words in the King James Bible is paralleled in an earlier translation: the majority (160) in the Geneva Bible of 1560. There’s a marvellous 38 page table setting out the occurrence of David Crystal’s 257 identified idioms in the different versions of the bible chosen.
So, what is the difference between Bible quotation and idiom? Bible quotations are characterised by being used only in settings where their religious application is relevant, and they maintain their original sense, for example: ‘Behold a virgin shall be with child and shall bring forth a son.’ A biblical idiom that has entered the language will, in contrast, also be used by non-believers, will often have a change of meaning and will frequently (and sometimes humorously) be adapted, for example: ‘Let there be lite’.
David Crystal acknowledges that his classification is to some extent subjective and that other people may arrive at a slightly different number. So, what does this mean? Well, those that claim that there are thousands of examples are wrong. While 257 may not seem a particularly large number, a similar method applied to the writings of Shakespeare arrives at a total of about 100.
Fascinating stuff for those of us interested in the English language.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
It’s been 400 years since the King James Bible was published in 1611, and it is often referred to as a source of great influence on the English language. Consider these commonly used phrases: ‘A fly in the ointment’, ’How are the mighty fallen’, ‘Let there be light’, ‘New wine in old bottles ‘, ‘The salt of the earth’, and ‘The skin of one’s teeth’. Each of these phrases owes its popularity to the King James Bible.
But is it true that no book has had a greater influence on the English language? To answer this question, David Crystal, a professor of linguistics, has sifted through the King James Bible and compared it to six earlier translations. While acknowledging that the King James Bible owes much to those earlier translations – especially those by Wycliffe (14th century) and Tyndale (16th century) there are also some key revisions. Consider the impact of ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?’ with Wycliffe’s ‘Am I the keeper of my brother?’
English has changed in the past 400 years and while (most of us at least) no longer use the exact same language of the King James Bible, David Crystal has looked at idiom rather than quotation to demonstrate its influence. David Crystal has counted 257 phrases or words that are now idiomatic, and they are each listed and discussed in the book. While only 18 of these idioms take the exact form shown in the King James Bible, 7 exact forms come from other translations.
Interestingly, in 37 cases the King James antecedent has been rewritten while in the other 196 cases, the form of words in the King James Bible is paralleled in an earlier translation: the majority (160) in the Geneva Bible of 1560. There’s a marvellous 38 page table setting out the occurrence of David Crystal’s 257 identified idioms in the different versions of the bible chosen.
So, what is the difference between Bible quotation and idiom? Bible quotations are characterised by being used only in settings where their religious application is relevant, and they maintain their original sense, for example: ‘Behold a virgin shall be with child and shall bring forth a son.’ A biblical idiom that has entered the language will, in contrast, also be used by non-believers, will often have a change of meaning and will frequently (and sometimes humorously) be adapted, for example: ‘Let there be lite’.
David Crystal acknowledges that his classification is to some extent subjective and that other people may arrive at a slightly different number. So, what does this mean? Well, those that claim that there are thousands of examples are wrong. While 257 may not seem a particularly large number, a similar method applied to the writings of Shakespeare arrives at a total of about 100.
Fascinating stuff for those of us interested in the English language.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
emiged's review against another edition
2.0
Two hundred fifty-seven. That's how many idioms Mr. Crystal has identified as coming into common use in the English language expressly because of the King James Version of the Bible. The “skin of one's teeth,” “fire and brimstone,” “there's nothing new under the sun,” even “be very afraid” all have their roots in the KJV, arguably the most influential book ever published.
In coming up with the number two hundred fifty-seven, Mr. Crystal makes a distinction between idioms, which have general everyday usage and can apply to various situations, and quotations, which he defines as “expressions which are used only in settings where the religious application is relevant, maintaining their original biblical sense.” So, let's look at Psalms, for example. “The Lord is my shepherd” (Psalms 23:1) is an extremely well-known phrase found in the King James Version of the Holy Bible, but it is rarely, if ever, used out of the original context and therefore counts as a quotation, not included in the two hundred fifty-seven idioms mentioned above. However, “out of the mouth of babes” (Psalms 8:2) is spoken frequently when a child says something humorous, insightful or prescient.
Idioms in the Old Testament are dealt with in the order in which they appear, starting with Genesis (“let there be light”) and going through Malachi (“root nor branch”). After a brief interlude discussing some of the differences between the Old and New Testaments, Mr. Crystal picks up with a thematic approach to the New Testament, grouping similar topics of idioms together. With the aid of Google (and, I'm sure, other research methods), Mr. Crystal collects several examples of uses to which these idioms have been put, some incredibly clever and some groan-worthy. In the chapter “A Coat of Many Colours” he mentions the Broadway musical “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat;” the country song by Dolly Parton; a blog for bi-color, tri-color and solid-coated cats; and headlines on articles in biochemistry, publishing, fashion, politics and sociology, just to name a few.
Among the fascinating tidbits throughout the book are the additional translations that Mr. Crystal notes. He refers frequently to at least five other versions of the Bible: Wycliffe's, Tyndale's, the Geneva Bible, the Bishops' Bible, and the Douai-Rheims translation. He even includes an appendix comparing the translations of the 257 idioms across the six versions. It's sometimes difficult, Mr. Crystal points out, to pin the credit for making a particular phrase a common idiom on the KJV. Some of the phrases (like “my brother's keeper”) were in multiple translations, some (such as “sour grapes”) were already in common usage before the KJV was published and some (“no rest for the wicked,” for example) take a different form that what is actually found in any translation of the Bible.
Begat may be a bit heavy on linguistics and historical and grammatical minutiae for those not intrigued by the topic, but even so, it's a great reference to read a chapter or two at a time for curiosity's sake.
(On a related note, there's a delightful video at http://kingsenglish.info/ which takes you through 100 idiomatic phrases from the King James Bible – all mentioned in Begat – in three minutes!)
For more book reviews, come visit my blog, Build Enough Bookshelves.
In coming up with the number two hundred fifty-seven, Mr. Crystal makes a distinction between idioms, which have general everyday usage and can apply to various situations, and quotations, which he defines as “expressions which are used only in settings where the religious application is relevant, maintaining their original biblical sense.” So, let's look at Psalms, for example. “The Lord is my shepherd” (Psalms 23:1) is an extremely well-known phrase found in the King James Version of the Holy Bible, but it is rarely, if ever, used out of the original context and therefore counts as a quotation, not included in the two hundred fifty-seven idioms mentioned above. However, “out of the mouth of babes” (Psalms 8:2) is spoken frequently when a child says something humorous, insightful or prescient.
Idioms in the Old Testament are dealt with in the order in which they appear, starting with Genesis (“let there be light”) and going through Malachi (“root nor branch”). After a brief interlude discussing some of the differences between the Old and New Testaments, Mr. Crystal picks up with a thematic approach to the New Testament, grouping similar topics of idioms together. With the aid of Google (and, I'm sure, other research methods), Mr. Crystal collects several examples of uses to which these idioms have been put, some incredibly clever and some groan-worthy. In the chapter “A Coat of Many Colours” he mentions the Broadway musical “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat;” the country song by Dolly Parton; a blog for bi-color, tri-color and solid-coated cats; and headlines on articles in biochemistry, publishing, fashion, politics and sociology, just to name a few.
Among the fascinating tidbits throughout the book are the additional translations that Mr. Crystal notes. He refers frequently to at least five other versions of the Bible: Wycliffe's, Tyndale's, the Geneva Bible, the Bishops' Bible, and the Douai-Rheims translation. He even includes an appendix comparing the translations of the 257 idioms across the six versions. It's sometimes difficult, Mr. Crystal points out, to pin the credit for making a particular phrase a common idiom on the KJV. Some of the phrases (like “my brother's keeper”) were in multiple translations, some (such as “sour grapes”) were already in common usage before the KJV was published and some (“no rest for the wicked,” for example) take a different form that what is actually found in any translation of the Bible.
Begat may be a bit heavy on linguistics and historical and grammatical minutiae for those not intrigued by the topic, but even so, it's a great reference to read a chapter or two at a time for curiosity's sake.
(On a related note, there's a delightful video at http://kingsenglish.info/ which takes you through 100 idiomatic phrases from the King James Bible – all mentioned in Begat – in three minutes!)
For more book reviews, come visit my blog, Build Enough Bookshelves.
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