Chrysti The Wordsmith: Swashbuckler - 1

Greetings from Montana State University in Bozeman. This is Christie Smith Christie the wordsmith. Much of what we know about swashbuckling. We've learned from the movies thanks to onscreen roles created by the likes of Douglas Fairbanks Jr. Errol Flynn and Johnny Depp. We all know that plundering sword fighting wenching and sailing the high seas are the stock in trade of swashbucklers. But we never see Pirates buckle swatches or whatever it is they do to earn their job title. So what do we find when we frisk today's word swashbuckler. The Oxford English Dictionary reveals that this word is a compound of two terms swash and buckler. No great revelation there but the fun begins when we size up each word on its own first swash the not so common today the word swash once was the verbal representation of the sound of swords who sing and clanging in battle. A writer in 16 0 9 described a skirmish this way quote on all sides swords swash and darts flew as thick as hail.

So swash is an antique on a model. An old word that to our linguistic predecessors sounded like the heat of a sword fight Swash. Well we've solved the mystery of the first element of the term swashbuckler. Next time the buckler is revealed and can you guess what it might mean. I'm Christi the wordsmith fair they read me mateys Christie the wordsmith is sponsored by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Zoot enterprises a high tech firm in Bozeman Montana offering challenging careers and innovative solutions for the financial services industry. Pseud web dot com.