Re: Etymology of "barbarian"

LFS wrote:

From today's Independent on Sunday (only the first two paragraphs are online and ICBA to type the rest)

Sheep: an apology

There will be some readers, we fear, who will not take seriously our report today about the intelligence of sheep. There are still far too many people in this country who use sheep analogies in a thoughtless, hurtful and derogatory way. The word is used to imply someone who possesses no independence of thought, who is a passive follower of trends. Such lazy stereotypes, and the infantile sniggering and insensitive sniping that often accompany them, do a considerable disservice to a proud species.

There are also important issues over use of the word sheepish to mean embarrassed, lacking in confidence or looking a bit guilty. And the prejudice from Roman times in the word barbarian, which, as every schoolchild knows, derived from the insult that the languages of uncivilised non-Roman tribes consisted of sheep-like syllables.

I believe it originally came from Greek, and the Greeks may well have said "varvar" rather than "baabaa", so I think the poor sheep have been slandered. I won't mention "black sheep" in case I upset Ray Wise.


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Rob Bannister
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