[Assam] "Non-Veg"

[uttam borthakur]

Chandan Da:      I notice with amusement that you could not help going for the jibe. This makes the chit-chat juicy.. in my opinion.
 
Uttam Kumar Borthakur




________________________________
From: Chan Mahanta <cmahanta at charter.net>
To: A Mailing list for people interested in Assam from around the world <assam at assamnet.org>
Sent: Wednesday, 4 February, 2009 8:44:52 PM
Subject: Re: [Assam] "Non-Veg"

Good explanation Uttam. Prof. Goswami is a wise man and a true scholar.

BTW, back in Upper-Assam, we all grew up saying 'muror-xitaan' and 'bhorir  pothaan'. In fact these were further degenerated  to forms such as 'bhori-pithaan'. WE had no idea what the etymology of the words/phrases were. However they were well understood by everyone ands thus effective as means of communication.

It wouldn't be so, if we arbitrarily change the meaning of a word or a phrase  to suit a particular need, as in "Indian secularism".











At 8:22 PM +0530 2/4/09, uttam borthakur wrote:
> JS:
> 
> This is an interesting question.
> 
> Vegetarian used as a noun should mean one who does not take any food other than vegetables or derived out of vegetables. I do not know whether 'rice' is a vegetable or not. This definition would rule out dairy products as well.
> 
> I think vegetarian used as a noun would exclude those people, who eat flesh or egg. As an adjective, as in vegetarian food, it would qualify those food that are not flesh or egg.
> 
> So you see, the term would convey a meaning in general (in popular parlance) and the de-construction part may be that of the person who takes cognisance.
> 
> I found that on-line Merriam Webster dictionary has an entry for this word under the prefix NON. Also, there are numerous sites referring to  the term non-vegetarian. So, it is in use; and whether or not used in a particular community it is a part of the vocabulary of a considerable size of English speaking and English reading population of the world.
> 
> I do not know whether you are acquainted with the name of Professor Golok Chandra Goswami. He's an expert of the Oxomiya language. Now there was a controversy between us friends as to whether there can be terms like "BHORIR POTHAN" and "MUROR XITHAN". Because, PADA + STHAN( legs + place) are fused (xomaxbaddha roop) into POTHAN. So, some people suggested that use of the word BHORIR before POTHAN would be an absurdity! When the debate raged, I had chanced upon this illustrious professor and placed the question for his arbitration, because, such terms were used by Late Mitra Dev Mahanta in "Mou-Mahabharat" at PRASTUTI PARBA.
> 
> The good professor with great patience explained to me that there are certain thing in a language called STREAM-ROLLER of ANALOGY. So, both BHORIR POTHAN and MUROR XITHAN are correct though they are apparent inexactitude.He said that it needs broader mindset to enrich language and culture!
> Uttam Kumar Borthakur
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ________________________________
> From: Jyotirmoy Sharma <jyotirmoy.sharma at gmail.com>
> To: A Mailing list for people interested in Assam from around the world <assam at assamnet.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, 4 February, 2009 7:05:44 PM
> Subject: [Assam] "Non-Veg"
> 
> Sorry ..not an adult joke :-)
> Does anyone know if the word "non-veg" is used anywhere outside India ?
> I think it is actually a wrong use of the English language to describe
> people who eat both vegetarian and meat products. I am not aware of any word
> that describes people who fall in this category. I only hear the word from
> Indians and Indian restaurants.
> Just curious.
> JS
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