Impromptu Gifts

Hello, you have A Way with Words.

Hello.

Hi, who’s this?

This is Evora from South Carolina.

Well, hello, Evora. What’s happening in South Carolina?

I have a problem with a word.

Oh, no.

Not really. Since I started listening to your show, I’m very aware of the words around me, which I usually was, but now I question them.

Excellent.

Yeah. And this is the word, Circe.

Circe.

Which I have heard it all my life.

I have a Cersei for you, meaning I have a small gift, and it turns out to be something silly and small, like a new pencil.

Now, in what context would you hear this?

Many contexts, but this one, my walking buddy, we were meeting one day, and she said, I have a Cersei for you.

Oh, boy, what is it?

And it happened to be a baggie of goji berries.

Okay, so your friend said, I have a Circe for you, and that meant a little gift.

And how do you suppose it’s spelled?

I spell it C-I-R-C-E, but I’ve never really had to spell it.

But when I was looking it up, that’s what I used, and all I found was the mythological goddess.

Right.

Which didn’t seem to have anything to do with surprises.

No, well, except that she changed people into pigs, and that was a nasty surprise.

Yeah.

Yeah.

I love the word Circe.

And we have come across it before.

It’s often spelled S-I-R-S-E-E.

-huh.

And it is chiefly Southern, but we’re not exactly sure where it comes from.

I’ve seen speculation that it might come from a Scots word that means to take trouble or take care that sort of sounds similar, maybe even going back to the French souci, meaning care.

So it’s a little thought gift, a little gift that you’d give to somebody to show them that you care.

And just because it’s a pencil or a bag of berries doesn’t mean that you don’t care that much.

It’s just a little gift to let somebody know you’re thinking about them.

It always seems to be in that context.

Yeah.

Well, I have never looked it up, so I’ve never really known how to spell it.

Well, as we often refer to here, the Dictionary of American Regional English has an entry for this under S-I-R-S-E-E.

And it just so happens that if you go to Google Books, that particular page is there for the viewing.

So it’s sort of like a lanyap.

Do you ever use that word?

Lanyap?

Mm—

I love that word.

How do you spell it?

L-A-G-N-I-A-P-P-E.

That’s a little extra gift that a store owner might give you, especially in some place like Louisiana.

It’s a French word.

Is it commonly used?

Sure.

In the South.

Yeah, it is in the South.

Although I like Searcy.

There’s something diminutive about the sound of it.

Here’s a little Searcy for you.

And that’s exactly how they say it.

Well, Laura, we appreciate your calling.

I appreciate your response.

All right. Take good care.

All right.

Thank you.

All right. Bye-bye.

Bye.

Well, if you’ve got a question about a saying or an expression that seems to be local, we would like to hear about it.

Or if you just want to tell us if it’s not really a question, the number to call is 1-877-WAYWORD.

That’s 1-877-929-9673.

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