6.22.2008

A British email

I got an email from a guy who created My Language Notebook, which is a free program "to keep and organise your notes when you are learning a language." I haven't been able to use it yet because I have a Mac, but it looks like a nifty app.

When I saw the word "organise" in the description, I knew the creator was British because he used "s" instead of "z" (we Americans write "organize"). So I asked him, and he said he is from England, so I was right about that, and I thought that was the end of my questions.

But then he said he'd been to the U.S. where he "had a top time", and signed his email "Have a top one". So I just had to ask where such a use of "top" came from, because I'd never heard it before. This is his explanation:

Top is more of a Manchester word originally, but it was adopted by a lot of people in about 1990 at the height of the 'Madchester' movement. Most of my mates have been saying it ever since.

"My mates"--another British term. Which means his email exemplifies British English, which is interesting to me :D

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