Saturday, February 21, 2015

Random Fact of the Day:

In Middle English, there was a feminine occupational suffix--ster.
Although occupations that women could be known for were relatively few, and getting that form passed down to descendants was proportionally rare compared to males (and both male & females forms were also eventually used interchangeably for both genders), there are still a few that survived to Modern English:

Baxter--orig. Bakester, a female baker
Brewster--a female brewer
Dexter--orig. Dyster, a female dyer
Huckster--a female travelling merchant
Sangster--a female singer
Tapster--a female bartender or tavern keeper
Walkster--a female clothmaker
Webster--a female weaver

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