Difference between revisions of "Marches"
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'''Marches''' is ambiguous. It can be: | '''Marches''' is ambiguous. It can be: | ||
| − | *the [[third person]] [[singular]] [[inflection]] of the [[verb]] 'to '''march'''<nowiki>'</nowiki>: a soldier '''marches''' | + | *the [[third person]] [[singular]] [[inflection]] of the [[verb]] 'to '''march'''<nowiki>'</nowiki>: a soldier '''marches'''. '''Marches''' can also be the [[plural]] of the name of the third month of the year. |
*a unit [e.g. of time] connected with the above [[verb]], for example 'Rome lay three marches away'. A '''forced march''' is a military march carried out under pressure of greater speed or distance, or both, than normal | *a unit [e.g. of time] connected with the above [[verb]], for example 'Rome lay three marches away'. A '''forced march''' is a military march carried out under pressure of greater speed or distance, or both, than normal | ||
| − | * | + | *a geographical or political designation of an area, meaning 'borderland'. |
| − | + | **In Britain, '''the Marches''' is usually the lands lying between England and Wales, nowadays most often applied to Shropshire. A '''marcher lord''' was a magnate responsible for [a section of] the border. A territorial title for such was '''Marquis''' or '''Marquess''' ([[feminine]] '''Marchioness'''), which is to March as [[count - county|Count is to county]] | |
| − | + | ***Before the [[Act of Union 1707]], the - often lawless - border between England and Scotland was divided into three '''March'''es for each country, the '''East March''', '''West March''' and '''Middle March'''. '''Wardens''' were appointed for each of these to govern and control the Border. | |
| − | + | ::::The title of [[George Eliot]]'s novel ''Middlemarch'' has only an incidental connection with the central wards on the Border. | |
| − | + | **The name '''March''', or its equivalent (usually [[cognate]]) in other languages, is common internationally. Until the fifteenth century there was a county of ''La Marche'' in France; Denmark keeps 'Mark' as part of its name, and Austria has from time to time been called ''Ostmark'', the 'eastern border'. Italy has a region called ''Le Marche'' or 'the Marches', which was formed from the three border territories of the Marches of Ancona, Camerino and Fermo within [[Charlemagne]]'s territories. ([[West Germanic]] cultures use '''Margrave''' (Dutch) or '''Markgraf''' (German) instead of the [[Romance languages|Romance]] 'Marquis', etc.) | |
| − | + | **Obsolete [[homonym]]s of '''March''' include names for 'wild celery', 'the spoor of an otter', and '[a part of] a loom'. | |
| − | [[ | + | *One very strange [[etymological]] fact is that the common [[noun]] 'mark' , meaning 'a visible sign', 'a label', 'a [wreitten] symbol with a clearmeaning', 'a stain or blemish', etc, was originally a landmark, specifically a boundary marker. Only gradually did it cometo have its much wider, post-literacy set of meanings, including such refinements as '''trademarks'''. In its original sense it is a derivative of '''[the] Marches''' |
| − | + | ||
[[Category:disambig]] | [[Category:disambig]] | ||
[[Category:clarification of meanings]] | [[Category:clarification of meanings]] | ||
[[Category:names]] | [[Category:names]] | ||
| + | [[Category:etymology]] | ||
| + | [[Category:British history]] | ||
| + | [[Category:European history]] | ||
| + | [[Category:etymological curiosities]] | ||
Latest revision as of 16:13, 6 April 2021
Marches is ambiguous. It can be:
- the third person singular inflection of the verb 'to march': a soldier marches. Marches can also be the plural of the name of the third month of the year.
- a unit [e.g. of time] connected with the above verb, for example 'Rome lay three marches away'. A forced march is a military march carried out under pressure of greater speed or distance, or both, than normal
- a geographical or political designation of an area, meaning 'borderland'.
- In Britain, the Marches is usually the lands lying between England and Wales, nowadays most often applied to Shropshire. A marcher lord was a magnate responsible for [a section of] the border. A territorial title for such was Marquis or Marquess (feminine Marchioness), which is to March as Count is to county
- Before the Act of Union 1707, the - often lawless - border between England and Scotland was divided into three Marches for each country, the East March, West March and Middle March. Wardens were appointed for each of these to govern and control the Border.
- In Britain, the Marches is usually the lands lying between England and Wales, nowadays most often applied to Shropshire. A marcher lord was a magnate responsible for [a section of] the border. A territorial title for such was Marquis or Marquess (feminine Marchioness), which is to March as Count is to county
- The title of George Eliot's novel Middlemarch has only an incidental connection with the central wards on the Border.
- The name March, or its equivalent (usually cognate) in other languages, is common internationally. Until the fifteenth century there was a county of La Marche in France; Denmark keeps 'Mark' as part of its name, and Austria has from time to time been called Ostmark, the 'eastern border'. Italy has a region called Le Marche or 'the Marches', which was formed from the three border territories of the Marches of Ancona, Camerino and Fermo within Charlemagne's territories. (West Germanic cultures use Margrave (Dutch) or Markgraf (German) instead of the Romance 'Marquis', etc.)
- Obsolete homonyms of March include names for 'wild celery', 'the spoor of an otter', and '[a part of] a loom'.
- One very strange etymological fact is that the common noun 'mark' , meaning 'a visible sign', 'a label', 'a [wreitten] symbol with a clearmeaning', 'a stain or blemish', etc, was originally a landmark, specifically a boundary marker. Only gradually did it cometo have its much wider, post-literacy set of meanings, including such refinements as trademarks. In its original sense it is a derivative of [the] Marches
