[Sca-cooks] Lamb (was Re: lent, wine, indulgences, de Nola)

[Huette von Ahrens]

--- Terry Decker <t.d.decker at worldnet.att.net>
wrote:
> I would point out that lamb and sheep are both
> of Anglo-Saxon derivation,
> while mutton is of Norman-French derivation. 
> The cookbooks we have are
> written for noble households and date from
> after 1100, when Middle English
> came into common use.  Middle English is
> Anglo-Norman and the use of the
> word mutton rather than lamb or sheep is
> probably an artifact of the Norman
> French of the ruling class.  It may be that
> mutton did not have a clearly
> defined age implication at that time or it may
> be that lambs were too
> valuable to waste as food.
> 
> Bear

According to "The Story of English", this
relationship between Anglo-Saxon and Norman words
shows the class distinctions after the conquest.

All the AS words [sheep, cow, pig, deer] show
that the Saxons were the caretakers of the
animals.

All the Norman words [mutton, beef, pork,
venison]
show that the Normans were the eaters of the
animals.

Huette




=====
Blessed are they who can laugh at themselves for they 
shall never cease to be amused.

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