"Jean Valjean" ? John Armstrong
----- Original Message -----
From: Edward Loizeaux
To: List, S scale
Sent: Tuesday, March 08, 2011 8:15 PM
Subject: {S-Scale List} "S"pelling
Gents....
"S"ince there seems to be an amazing interest in my name, here is the entire
story as handed down over the generations. Back in Marseille many moons
ago, my ancestor was in partnership with another gentleman and they jointly
owned a large department store. The other so-called gentleman ran off with
a cute young female and all the money leaving my ancestor with the unpaid
bills and no money. As the police were closing in, my ancestor did the only
logical thing possible -- he fled to America where he could not be traced.
Upon arrival at Ellis Island, he found himself at a desk with an immigration
agent on the other side. There were forms to be filled out and the agent
had the pen. My ancestor did not speak English and the agent (apparently)
did not speak French. But somehow the forms got filled out.
My name results from the entry on the official form. Americans find it
strange and the French are confused by it also. But it is unique and has a
special meaning to me. End of story. Simon's original spelling of my name
exactly matches what I have been told by my grandparents. So Simon is
probably correct about that.
The meaning, in simplified terms, is "BIRDS". The Werre-omitted "X" is what
makes it plural. The "s" becoming a "z" is the result of the agent's
handwriting. The apostrophe disappearing is magical without explanation.
In the very olde days in France, a person's name tended to follow his
occupation. There is speculation that someone back then was involved in
falconry (hunting birds, not hunting for birds) or possibly a zookeeper or a
veterinarian or something similar. Maybe a chef?
Pronunciation is an even stranger matter with various Loizeauxs pronouncing
the word somewhat differently. I am simply using my father's pronunciation
(right or wrong) since he studied French in college and used it to his
advantage while in the US Army during WWII. But that is another story for
another time. Anyone anywhere whose name is spelled exactly the same is
related and also descended from the same immigrant running away from the
cops way back when. Interesting, eh? No, we did not come via Canada. Or
New Orleans. It was a direct boat ride with no stops in the 18XX years.
Now back to S scale......Ed L. (with X)
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From: Simon
I believe the original spelling was "L'oiseau"
> I hope Ed will
> forgive me.
> Bob Werre
Speaking as the kid who was last in his class to spell his own name
correctly, you are forgiven. ed loizeauX (every vowel plus a "Z" and an
"X") PS: what more could anyone ask for in a name?
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