On Wed, Aug 26, 2009 at 8:54 AM, Ramakrishnan Sundaram<r.sunda...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> as that evening is one of the functions I'm >> coming into town for. > > I'm fascinated by this usage; I've only seen it in Indian English. >From [1]: <q> 4 : an official or formal ceremony or social gathering </q> > Any ideas on how "function" came to mean "event"? > > It may be "a function" as in "a do". Yes, that seems quite clear from the etymology at the link below. <q> Etymology: Latin function-, functio performance, from fungi to perform; probably akin to Sanskrit bhuṅkte he enjoys Date: 1533 </q> To Suresh: given that it is a wedding reception, elai sapadu is certainly not out of the question. Also, would you come and vouch for me as a 'Traditional Iyer maama'? Udhay [1] http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/function -- ((Udhay Shankar N)) ((udhay @ pobox.com)) ((www.digeratus.com))
