The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #19944   Message #1840813
Posted By: leeneia
22-Sep-06 - 10:18 AM
Thread Name: Origins: Lizzy Lindsay (Child 226)
Subject: RE: Lyr Req: lizzy lindsay
I decided to see what my unabridged dictionary has to say about "leesy" as an adjective.

The closest it comes is "leesome," which means "pleasant" and is "obsolete except Scotland." It's easy to imagine leesome becoming leesie.

I find it hard to believe that a desirable woman would be called "Lizzie." To me it sounds almost derogatory, as in "Tin Lizzie" for a model-T Ford or the deathless line:

Go get the axe; there's a flea in Lizzie's ear...

On the other hand, isn't using Lindsay for a given name a recent development?

Curiouser and curiouser.