Rutchy and Squirming

Hello, you have A Way with Words.

Hi, this is Hope from Buffalo, New York.

Hi, Hope in Buffalo. How are you?

I’m good. How are you?

Super duper. Welcome to the show.

Thank you.

Well, I had called regarding a word that was used by my grandmother, my father’s mother, growing up. And he has also told us that this word was used with him and his sister as they grew up. And it is the word ruchy. And it was used in a context when we were little kids and we had ants in our pants. We couldn’t sit still. And my grandmother would lean over to us, like in church, and tell us, stop being so ruchy. And then in talking with my dad, she used the same phrase. But then if they didn’t comply with her request, it would lose the IE and be added to another less savory word. So but she never used that with us. So we just knew the word Richie. And as I talked to friends and would use this word with him, they’d go, what does that mean? So I was just curious, you know, if there’s any idea where this would come from, because it’s not a word that’s familiar with other friends and people I know.

Well, you know, Hope, I think Grant knows the very first question I’m going to ask you about this. And it’s not whether you were Ruchi, because it sounds like you were. It sounds like you were. Most children are. It was more directed to my youngest sister. She couldn’t sit still.

Okay.

Okay.

Well, my real question is, is there any German heritage in your family?

So, interesting. Not necessarily from my grandmother. My grandmother was Portuguese. Both her parents were from Portugal, come through Provincetown, Rhode Island. But my, so her parents. But my great-grandfather, her father, had the last name of Gaskell, which looking it up would have either been English, German, or French. So that’s the only thing.

Yeah, that’s a little far back. Anybody live in Pennsylvania Dutch territory?

Yep, that was my next question.

No, no. Because this word does indeed exist. You’re not the only person who uses it. And you usually hear it in areas of German settlement in this country. And that’s why Grant was asking about Pennsylvania and Pennsylvania Dutch, because there is a German word, rutschen, which means to slip or to slide or to slither. And this has been adapted into English dialect in a number of forms because it just gets passed on from, you know, one person to another rather than written so much. And so Roochie and Rooch, R-O-O-C-H and R-O-O-T-S-H and words like that have to do with wiggling. You know, if you have a baby who’s a real wiggler, she’s slipping around and scooting around and squirming and fidgeting when you try to diaper her. She’s said to be Roochie or Roochie or Rutzy.

Okay.

Yeah, it definitely has German roots. And if you go to Pennsylvania, I am sure you’ll hear people say that.

I’m sure. That is wonderful to know. I know her husband, my grandfather, he would have been, or he had English and German ancestry. But it’s interesting, it was my grandmother who used it more so than, I don’t remember my grandfather saying it. But I know in the Buffalo area there is a huge German population with German ancestry, and there’s a lot of a big mix of different ethnic groups that came in, especially around the turn of the century. So that doesn’t surprise me that where it would come from. And my grandmother was of Portuguese descent but living in an Irish neighborhood. So, you know, everybody kind of mixed together. So that’s wonderful to know. I can’t wait to tell my dad. He’ll be thrilled to find out, you know, kind of where this word has come from. And that it is actually a word and not just something she made up.

Absolutely.

Absolutely.

Well, we’re glad you called, Hope. Thank you so much. I’m so grateful to talk to you today.

Thank you.

All right. Take care of yourself.

All right.

Bye.

There are fun things in everybody’s family language. Martha and I would love to hear yours. 877-929-9673 is toll free in the United States and Canada. And you can also email us words@waywordradio.org. And if you’re somewhere else in the world, try us on WhatsApp. You can find that number on our website at waywordradio.org.