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**Creva4k** · 10-18-2005, 07:00 AM

Gossip
This is a very old word with a much more modern meaning. It comes from the Old English godsibb, meaning a godparent or baptismal sponsor. It comes from god + sib (meaning blood relation as in sibling). It dates to at least 1014.

By 1362, the term was being used to mean a close friend, one you might chose to be godparent to your children. It was applied to both men and women, although in later uses it came to be applied only to women. By 1566, the word was being used to mean a flighty woman, one who would engage in idle talk. From there it came to mean the idle talk itself.

10-18-2005, 07:00 AM	#2
Creva4k Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 382 Senior Member	Gossip This is a very old word with a much more modern meaning. It comes from the Old English godsibb, meaning a godparent or baptismal sponsor. It comes from god + sib (meaning blood relation as in sibling). It dates to at least 1014. By 1362, the term was being used to mean a close friend, one you might chose to be godparent to your children. It was applied to both men and women, although in later uses it came to be applied only to women. By 1566, the word was being used to mean a flighty woman, one who would engage in idle talk. From there it came to mean the idle talk itself.
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