释义 |
hob·son-job·son \|häbsən|jäbsən\ noun (-s) Usage: usually capitalized H&J Etymology: Anglo-Indian modification (influenced by the English surnames Hobson and Jobson) of Arabic yā Ḥasan! yā Ḥusayn! O Hasan! O Husain! (cry repeated at the Muharram festival as an expression of mourning for Hasan and Husain, grandsons of Muhammad, killed in the early struggles between the Sunni and Shi'a parties) : assimilation of the sounds of a word or words foreign to a language into the sounds of a word or words coined or already existent in the language (as Spanish cucaracha has become English cockroach or as English riding coat has become French redingote) < the law of Hobson-Jobson has played a great role in the evolution of surnames — R.F.Barton > — compare folk etymology |