BSD Potpourri Vol 1.: Ort

Ort derives from Middle low German, and - in typical German fashion - was a compound word which meant food remains, or scraps. Today the word is only rarely used, and never used properly. The lone example of ort-usage comes from the hill-and-valley Appalachians of Pennsylvania, only spoken, never written, and is actually not “ort” at all, but a deformed version of “ought”, (e.g., “you ort-not write this blog”).

Merle Haggard was not from the hill and valley region of Pennsylvania, which is about the only strike against him. However, with a little aural creativity, you can hear Uncle Merle sing “gripin’ ‘bout the way things ort to be” in the Tube below.

Try it. It fits.

As we noted a few weeks…