"Magyu" as a variant of "Wagyu" beef?
July 6, 2017 11:15 AM Subscribe
Was "Magyu" beef ever a legitimate variant spelling of "Wagyu" beef, especially, say, in the 1980s? Google shows a few hits, and it wouldn't be a typing typo, since W and M aren't near each other on the keyboard, but it could just be people not paying attention.
I don't think it was ever a valid spelling. The only use in newspapers: Albuquerque Journal, September 28 1977. Nothing in Google books, not even OCR errors.
posted by dilaudid at 11:20 AM on July 6, 2017
posted by dilaudid at 11:20 AM on July 6, 2017
Actually, here's one more use in newspapers: Honolulu Star-Bulletin, September 25 1977 (note the similar dates).
posted by dilaudid at 11:26 AM on July 6, 2017
posted by dilaudid at 11:26 AM on July 6, 2017
Best answer: It doesn't make any sense. "Wagyu" literally means "Japanese cattle" (和牛). There's no way to get "Magyu" out of that.
posted by adamrice at 11:32 AM on July 6, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by adamrice at 11:32 AM on July 6, 2017 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thanks for the info. I'm researching correction suggestions for the Jeopardy! Archive, and so CITY CUISINE for $500 in this game gets an erratum notice.
posted by themanwho at 11:43 AM on July 6, 2017 [8 favorites]
posted by themanwho at 11:43 AM on July 6, 2017 [8 favorites]
As a point of antedata, I frequently misspell words by interchanging the "p", the "d" and the "b", even though I am a relatively fluent touch-typist, and they are nowhere near each other on the keyboard. I suspect that when tired or trying to move too fast, it pops its ugly head out at me. I could see it being a typo, and no one caught it in time.
posted by China Grover at 1:33 PM on July 6, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by China Grover at 1:33 PM on July 6, 2017 [1 favorite]
The only use in newspapers: Albuquerque Journal, September 28 1977.
The same UPI story ran in at least three other papers with Wagyu spelt correctly, so I think that's a typo, not a problem with the source.
W and M aren't near each other on the keyboard
It occurs to me that M and W aren't near each other on a QWERTY keyboard, but on a Linotype keyboard, as used for hot type, they're immediately above and below the letter F. I think many presses were phototypesetting (which typically used QWERTY input) by 1977, but not all of them. I can't find when exactly the Albuquerque Journal switched over, but according to this Texas Monthly article, they were still hiring Linotype operators in 1972.
posted by zamboni at 2:46 PM on July 6, 2017 [8 favorites]
The same UPI story ran in at least three other papers with Wagyu spelt correctly, so I think that's a typo, not a problem with the source.
W and M aren't near each other on the keyboard
It occurs to me that M and W aren't near each other on a QWERTY keyboard, but on a Linotype keyboard, as used for hot type, they're immediately above and below the letter F. I think many presses were phototypesetting (which typically used QWERTY input) by 1977, but not all of them. I can't find when exactly the Albuquerque Journal switched over, but according to this Texas Monthly article, they were still hiring Linotype operators in 1972.
posted by zamboni at 2:46 PM on July 6, 2017 [8 favorites]
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posted by zamboni at 11:17 AM on July 6, 2017 [4 favorites]