Clinton Township Newsletter

2 1 D e c e m b e r 2 0 1 4 Fresh Seafood, Grilled Specialties, Italian Classics, Brick Oven Pizzas • Fireside and Patio/Courtyard Dining • Cigar Smoking on the Wrap-Around Porch Private Parties and Catering 1 F a i r m o u n t r o a d , L o n g V a L L e y www.RestaurantVillageAtLongValley.com 908.876.9307 Open for Dinner Tuesday – Saturday at 5:00 pm, and Sundays at 3:00 pm • Bar Open Late The Computer Guy A DIVISION OF BDB ENTERPRISES Is Your Computer Driving You Crazy? We'll fix your computer in your home and help you effectively use it! For HOME • Flexible hours • Computer repair • Internet connection, printer & file sharing • DSL/Cable setup • Virus/firewall help • MS Office training For BUSINESS • Web hosting • Computer purchasing • Web site design • E-commerce specialist • Search engine optimizing • Networking/Firewalls • Business solutions Bruce Bednar Office: 908-713-9843 Annandale, NJ Cell: 908-310-7988 LEBANON DOOR COMPANY • Overhead Doors • Electric Operators • Storm Doors 119 Main Street, Lebanon, NJ 08833 908-236-2620 Glenn Coats, Proprietor Established 1957 Fax: 908-236-2946 Home: 908-730-6536 t h e h u n t e R d o n C o u n t y C u l t u R a l a n d h e R i t a g e C o m m i S S i o n "Jersey, By Any Other Name..." Part 4 B y f R a n K C u R C i o Last time we discussed the word "jersey" as developing from the style of knitted cloth the islanders invented, which became applied to the island and hence to our state. That reasoning has been around since at least the 1960s and fits all the data except one. The reasoning is based on English etymology—the history of words. But, for centuries, English was not the primary language of the islanders. A bit of history of our namesake island– The island sits in the English Channel between France and England. Its history dates back to the last Ice Age when so much water was bound–up in glaciations, sea level was much lower than today, making Jersey not an island, but a peninsula. With the end of the Ice Age, the sea level rose, leaving it an island again. Earlier we discussed the name Cæsarea, owing to Julius Caesar's use of the island as his staging point for the conquest of Britannia. Since there is scant evidence of any permanent Roman settlements on the island, it is unlikely that Cæsarea was ever the name the native islanders used to refer to their home. After the Fall of Rome, the island became part of the Frankish kingdom of North West Gaul—the region from Rouen to Brittany. Norse raiders—the folks we call Vikings—attacked the coastal area of Frankish–Gaul, captured it and the island of Jersey. The captured land became the home of the Norse– men, which in the developing French language was Nor–men and their land Normandy. When Duke William of Normandy, a descendent of one of the original Viking conquerors, invaded and conquered England in 1066, he declared himself the King of England and Normandy—his descendents spent a little over a century trying to conquer the rest of France. The brother of the absentee King of England, Richard I, and villain in the Robin Hood myths, King John, took his turn to conquer France, lost big and retained only the islands of Guernsey and Jersey. So Jersey remained a part of England, but English was not the official lan - guage of Jersey—it's only been official since World War II. Today many islanders are trilingual, speaking English, French and Jèrriais. Jèrriais? According to the Société Jersiaise [the Island's Historical Society], Jèrriais, the traditional language of the island, is a variation of the Norman–French language with its influence of Norse. Although its grammar and dependence on accent marks shows its French basis, it isn't really French. It's sort of a Scandinavian Romance language. For example, "Merry Christmas" in French is Joyeux Noël while in Jèrriais it's Bouan Noué. And with that— More Next Time (February) f R a n K C u R C i o @comcast.net email us at: • Reach Over 14,000 Local Consumers Monthly • Change Your Message Monthly • Have Your Ad Designed Free of Charge • Run a Small Article (about 150 words) Free • Link your ad to your website on our online version at: When you advertise in the CLINTON TOWNSHIP Newsletter, you can: www.ClintonTwpNewsletter.com

• _GoBack