Jim McKenney is struggling with the annual postprandial Thanksgiving distresses, so don't expect the last word here, only a comment. The Fitzwilliam Virginal Book, a collection of keyboard pieces assembled during the very late sixteenth century and early seventeenth century (the book antedates the eponymous Fitzwilliam by several centuries) contains a charming piece called The "Fall of the Leafe"; it was the first harpsichord piece I learned. The contemporary American name for the season is probably just a shortening of this phrase. Fall and autumn no doubt reflect the ancient tussle in the English language between our Germanic (Frisian) roots and the later Romantic imposition. It's another example of the hog and pork thing. Was "gray" one of Noah Webster's orthographic innovations? The huge disparity between the pronunciation of English and the spelling of English makes our language a very difficult one to learn. Almost seventy years have not been enough for me to truly master English spelling. Yet most educated people seem to strenuously resist spelling reform (i.e. change to spelling which reflects the pronunciation of words). I think I'm one of them: spelling tells us so much about the history of words. Folk etymology aside, it's a worthwhile and gratifying lifetime pursuit for me. I need another Alka-Seltzer... Jim McKenney jimmckenney@jimmckenney.com Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, 39.03871º North, 77.09829º West, USDA zone 7 My Virtual Maryland Garden http://www.jimmckenney.com/ <http://www.jimmckenney.com/> BLOG! http://mcwort.blogspot.com/ Webmaster Potomac Valley Chapter, NARGS Editor PVC Bulletin http://www.pvcnargs.org/ <http://www.pvcnargs.org/> Webmaster Potomac Lily Society http://www.potomaclilysociety.org/ <http://www.potomaclilysociety.org/>