Talk:shebang

Possible Irish etyma

The Irish for house is Tí (Shanty comes from Shan Tí or old house) Bán means white but that hardly seems to work. — This unsigned comment was added by 83.70.247.123 (talk) at 02:26, 8 August 2007.

2 sources for etymology already given, which is more than enough so I'll upgrade "unknown" to "proposed". Goldenrowley 23:38, 17 October 2007 (UTC)

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shebang

A vehicle? The whole chitty-chitty-bang-bang? --Connel MacKenzie 22:40, 17 October 2007 (UTC)

This is the only Google Scholar reference that relates to a vehicle. I don't have access to JSTOR and can't chase it down: Mark Twain's Lecture from Roughing it FW Lorch - American Literature, 1950 - JSTOR "... After a while he poked his head out in front and said to the driver, "I say, Johnny, this suits me. We want this shebang all day. ... " Hope it helps a bit. DCDuring 23:25, 17 October 2007 (UTC)

Well, the quotation is as follows:

• 1871 December 14, Samuel Clemens, “Roughing It” (lecture), printed in Fred W. Lorch, “Mark Twain's Lecture from Roughing it”, in American Literature, volume 22, number 3 (November 1950), pages 305,

  […] So they got into the empty omnibus and sat down. Colonel Jack says: “Well! ain’t it gay? Ain’t it nice? Windows and pictures and cushions, till you can’t rest. What would the boys think of this if they could see us cut such a swell in New York? I wish they could see us. What is the name of this.” Colonel Jim told him it was a barouche. After a while he poked his head out in front and said to the driver, “I say, Johnny, this suits me. We want this shebang all day. Let the horses go.” […]

But I can't say as I find it a very convincing example of this sense. To be honest, I really don't know what is meant here. Also, I can't quite tell where Lorch got this copy, though it's apparent that it's from reporters taking the whole thing down in shorthand; it seems to be from the 1871 December 21 Lansing State Republican (cite #4 in the article), but that's not made perfectly clear.

—Ruakh_TALK 23:47, 17 October 2007 (UTC)

I this sense "shebang' to Twain is the omnibus/barouche, which is a vehicle, and Mark Twain is ready to "let the horses go" because he like the (horseless) vehicle.Goldenrowley 03:59, 18 October 2007 (UTC)

If it helps understand the cite: I don't think it's a horseless vehicle, seeing as the internal combustion engine hadn't been invented yet and I don't think "omnibus" would be applied to any machine with external combustion engine (such as a steam locomotive); I think "let the horses go" means something like "don't hold the horses back" or "let the horses go fast". —Ruakh_TALK 05:32, 18 October 2007 (UTC)

"Omnibus" applied to horse-cars, running either on tracks or on regular roads. Steam was rarely used for frequently stopping service due to its poor acceleration and smokiness. DCDuring 15:58, 18 October 2007 (UTC)

Here's another source: *Shebang. Cassell's Dictionary of Slang By Jonathon Green, Sterling Pub. Co., Inc. 2006, p. 1261[1]. I also added this bottom of the page.Goldenrowley 05:09, 18 October 2007 (UTC)

RFV passed. Goldenrowley 01:26, 26 November 2007 (UTC)