LINGUIST List 2.376

Wednesday, 31 July 1991

Disc: Suffixgate

Editor for this issue: <>

Directory

1. Laurie Bauer, Response: X-gate
2. Martin Wynne, -gate
3. Varadi Tamas, Re: -gate

Yes, of course there is a new affix or pseudo-affix 'gate'. For some examples
see Barnhart, David K, 'American Speech' 55 (1980) 77-8 and Algeo, John &
Doyle, Charles Clay, 'American Speech' 56 (1981) 151-2.
Laurie Bauer
BauerLmatai.vuw.ac.nz

Surely the best of these involved a subplot of the Irangate affair, in
which it came to light that Ollie North had used secret funds destined
for the Contras to buy a new security system for the entrance to the
driveway to his house - giving us Gategate.

Re: -gate
You may be interested to know that there has been a profusion of
Hungarian words ending in -gate recently. In December, 1989 a
political scandal was dubbed Dunagate 'Danubegate' and in its wake
about 2 dozen Hungarian words were born on the pages of the
printed media. Examples include: Tiszagate and Rabagate (Tisza and
Raba are Hungarian rivers), munkasorgate 'workers militia gate',
zsarugate 'copgate' etc. I have an upcoming paper in American
Speech on them, probably issue 1 for 1992.
 Miklos Kontra