Hastings Makes Wastings

Almost two months ago (on Feb. 28) I mentioned that it would be good to blog on beef and mutton. Since then I can add venison to the list.

Beef came to Middle English in about 1300 from the Old French boef or buef (in the 11th century there was boeuf), which comes from the Latin word bovis. It refers to cows or bulls, oxen or any meat of the bovine family (bovine coming from bovis, too).

Mutton came to Middle English in the late 13th century from the Old French moton, which probably came from Middle Latin multo or multonem. It refers to the sheep or their flesh when used for food.

Venison came to Middle English as veneison in the late 13th century from the Old French venesoun, which came from the Latin word for a hunt (venatio). It originally meant any game meat from a hunt, but now is becoming more a reference to deer alone.

All three are pretty straightforward. But the question is: why do we call it a cow when alive but beef when butchered? The same holds true with sheep and mutton, and game and venison. We don’t call fish one thing alive and another thing when caught; and while pork comes directly from the Latin for pig (porcus), the other three come through Old French. What’s up with that?

It all goes back to 1066, which you know is when the Battle of Hastings took place that resulted in the Norman conquest of England. Subsequent to that, it became practice (and self-preservation) for nobility to speak French while the common folk continued to use Middle English, or lapse into Latin if it was perceived dangerous to speak in English.

So the commoners would produce the meat (whether cows or sheep or hunted game) and provide it to the royalty for consumption. Since only French was used, when the food was placed on the tables it was referred to in French as beef or mutton or venison.

In addition to food, we have other words that have resulted from the Norman conquest: an English flower will have a French bloom that issues a French odor, aroma, and scent vs. English smell and stench.

Since the reign of England by French royalty continued for many years, the words became engrained in our vocabulary. One source I consulted indicated that the French words adopted and kept provided more specificity than their English counterparts. There were no words for cooked cow or cut flowers, so the French become very useful.

For centuries French was a common language of royalty, as the most powerful kingdom through marriage and alliances influenced much of western culture. Only with the hegemony of the United States in commerce, as late as the 20th century, did English become the international language and the primary second language. So while we can say merci for greater English flexibility, others say thank you for economic opportunity.