More words and where they're from

Brat

So now I turn to one of my father's favorite words, which says a lot for my brothers, my sister and myself -- brat.  A brat is basically a bad child, and according to the Collins Dictionary etymologicial listings comes to us from the O.E. bratt, a poor child's piece of clothing, which in turn is from the Celtic brat meaning a piece of cloth one wore just to cover the body.

I shouldn't really mention that I'm referring to my students when I think of this word, but suddenly it just popped into my head.  A brat, and especially the stronger spoiled brat, is an obnoxious, misbehaving child who demands things -- notably attention -- and whose behavior is far from decorous.  Perfect examples of brats, including the spoiled variety, would be Justin Bieber*, Paris Hilton*, any of the Kardashians*, most professional soccer players* here in Europe, and of course One Direction*.  All you want to do is slap them across the face and send them packing or make them stand in a corner.

Besides spoiled brat, there is also the expression army brat, which is not a put-down or an insult at all.  It refers to the child or children of a military officer who are shifted from one home and one city every two years as the officer's career changes -- in essence, children who do not have time to put down any roots and make friends.

In the 1980s, there was also reference to the Brat Pack of actors (Emilio Estevez, Molly Ringwald, Rob Lowe, and many other now 50 year olds you may recognize but have never heard of) who were in such 80s teen classics (irony) as St. Elmo's Fire or The Breakfast Club at the movies, or My So-Called Life on television.  Having been a teenager during the disco & funk era, I missed that pop wave and am clearly happy to have spent more time with Earth, Wind & Fire, the Emotions, Evelyn "Champagne" King and Rick James rather than with some whiny Hollywood wannabes.  The epitome of the brat came even later on in the 1990s with the advent of the Spice Girls*.  

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Aha!  But wait -- in Wisconsin where I'm originally from, we also have brats but these are pronounced [bra:ts] or /brahts/ and come from the German Bratwurst and are amongst my favorite summertime barbecue foods.  Pure pork, they came with the German settlers to the upper Midwest in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and are enjoyed by millions and by the millions** each summer.  Truly delicious for meat-eaters, they used to be manufactured almost by hand in my home town by a local company, and were a true Wisconsin treat to be enjoyed on a bakery bun with your favorite fixings -- catsup or ketchup (see future blog post), brown or yellow mustard -- the debate continues! -- pickle relish, onions, sauerkraut or any other savory condiment.

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So since it's Friday and I'm in a good mood -- and for no other reason -- here is a bunch of brats parading and galavanting on a studio set mouthing the words to their own "song."  Have a good weekend.

*Pop "culture" "personalities" that I abhor and only mention to make fun of them and their vapidness and false sense of talent.
**By millions refers to people; by the millions refers to the number of bratwurst eaten each summer.