Thursday, May 04, 2006

The etymology/hermeneutics of "Decider"

Just thought we'd give a little background on what many people are saying is a word coined by ole' G. W. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word decider was actually used for the first time in 1592 by W. Wyrley in Armorie 23: "The Scriptures of God, the decider of all contreuersies" (No typo, this is before grammar rules clearly defined the difference between u and v). The most recent of the measely three historical citations noted is Wilberforce's 1862 use of the word in the phrase: "The...danger of having...the Irish bishops made the actual deciders of our doctrine."

So, in poor George's defense, the word exists. The definition is "one who or that decides (a contreversy, question, etc.)." The root is obviously from the root "Decide" which comes from the Latin d{emac}c{imac}d{ebreve}re, meaning to "cut off, to cut the knot, decide, determine."