Newsgroups: sci.lang
Path: cantaloupe.srv.cs.cmu.edu!rochester!cornellcs!travelers.mail.cornell.edu!news.kei.com!wang!news
From: bruck@actcom.co.il (Uri Bruck)
Subject: Re: English is a Germanic Language?
Organization: ACTCOM - Internet Services in Israel
Date: Fri, 13 Oct 1995 22:09:29 GMT
Message-ID: <DGEqvt.MyL@actcom.co.il>
References: <5vDaIwXCf$B@tiger.toppoint.de> <DG0x3K.FIM@hpqmoea.sqf.hp.com> <DG23oK.K3I@midway.uchicago.edu>
Sender: news@wang.com
Lines: 22

Daniel von Brighoff (deb5@ellis.uchicago.edu) wrote:
: In article <DG0x3K.FIM@hpqmoea.sqf.hp.com>,
: Dick Kaulfuss <dkaulf@hpqt0147.sqf.hp.com> wrote:
: >Achim Stenzel (achim@tiger.toppoint.de) wrote:

: >: BTW, in Edinburgh it is "refectory". I would welcome  
: >: enlightenment as to the differences between these terms..
: >
: >  And Glasgow. The refectory is/was the communal eating area in monasteries
: >  and other religious establishments.  I don't think "mensa" ever made it
: >  into British English in this context.

: "is" in my native dialect and, I suspect, American English in general,
: though it's such a rare word, it's hard to be sure.  I've only ever used
: it or heard it used when talking about the layout of a monastery or priory
: and, until now, I'd never seen it in print.

A couple of months back I asked about this. 'mensa' is in usage in most
of Europe (and Israel) as the name for a university cafeteria. Most
Americnas who responded to my query back then wrote that they only
heard it in Europe
Uri
