Humor

A Dirndl? Really?

By Anastasia ⋅ June 17, 2007 ⋅  Email this post ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment

23D. Seven letters. Tight-bodiced dresses

“Dirndls,” Mrs. Cohen and Shortz? Really?

One of the most common ways to tease an Eastern European in America is to mention the number of consonants languages like Polish and Ukrainian string in a row. “How do you pronounce those names, anyway?” I’ll tell you how: say “dirndls” twenty times, then try reading a last name like Polarski. Something tells me three consonants in a row will suddenly seem like nothing.

All joking aside, the word is derived from the German dirne, or a girl, and its derivative, dirndlkleid. So at least the British, once the vogue for the dresses began, had the sense to skip some of those beautiful consonants.