Berk

[nq:1]Does 'berk', meaning a stupid person, have anything to do with Berkshire?[/nq]
No, absolutely not. It's rhyming slang for Berkeley Hunt.

Regards,
Arfur
Berkshire

[nq:2]Does 'berk', meaning a stupid person, have anything to do with Berkshire?[/nq]
[nq:1]No, absolutely not. It's rhyming slang for Berkeley Hunt.[/nq]
The bi-annual Berkeley (Calif.) Early Music Festival is affectionately called the BerkFest.

dg (domain=ccwebster)

[nq:1]Does 'berk', meaning a stupid person, have anything to do with Berkshire?[/nq]
IIRC, The Royal County of Berkshire issued an edict(-oid) some years ago that it should NOT be abbreviated to "The Royal County of Berks".

John W Hall (Email Removed)
Cochrane, Alberta, Canada.
"Helping People Prosper in the Information Age"

[nq:1]Does 'berk', meaning a stupid person, have anything to do with Berkshire?[/nq]
Everything.

[nq:1]IIRC, The Royal County of Berkshire issued an edict(-oid) some years ago that it should NOT be abbreviated to "The Royal County of Berks".[/nq]
The world of grammar is divided into "berks" and "wankers" - berks being those who are outrageously slipshod about language, and wankers those who are (in our view) abhorrently over-precise. Left to the berks, the English language would "die of i

[nq:1]5. It is a fine tooth-comb, not a fine-tooth comb.[/nq]
It is?
I must be having a bad tooth day.

Steve Hayes from Tshwane, South Africa
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/7734/stevesig.htm
E-mail - see web page, or parse: shayes at dunelm full stop org ful

[nq:2]Does 'berk', meaning a stupid person, have anything to do with Berkshire?[/nq]
[nq:1]Everything.[/nq]
In theory, Berkshire is pronounced "Barkshire", and so, no, it hasn't. Surprisingly, however, some natives of Berkshire pronounce it as written. Which makes me wonder if it was pronounced that way back in the olden days.

*
I always assumed "berks" were males, but since t

[nq:1]In theory, Berkshire is pronounced "Barkshire", and so, no, it hasn't. Surprisingly, however, some natives of Berkshire pronounce it as written. Which makes me wonder if it was pronounced that way back in the olden days.[/nq]
Not just in theory I was brought up there, and I've never heard it pronounced as written. On the other hand, I've seen old maps on which it's spelled "Barkshire".

[nq:2]Does 'berk', meaning a stupid person, have anything to do with Berkshire?[/nq]
[nq:1]No, absolutely not. It's rhyming slang for Berkeley Hunt.[/nq]
I also thought it was definitely "Berkeley" hunt, but Collins has it as shortened rhyming slang for "Berkeley or Berkshire Hunt".

Cheers, Harvey
Ottawa/Toronto/Edmonton for 30 years;
Southern England for the past 22 years

[nq:2]Does 'berk', meaning a stupid person, have anything to do with Berkshire?[/nq]
[nq:1]No, absolutely not. It's rhyming slang for Berkeley Hunt.[/nq]
And I always thought it came from Burke & Hare.
Hmmm..

http://www.genjerdan.com/nvm/tdis/index.html
Of co