Monday, November 1, 2010

Molboland/Gotham/Place where simpletons are from

molboland noun Mols, about the same as Gotham
In Kunnskapsforlaget's Norsk-engelsk stor ordbok. This definition refers to Gotham, the village in Nottinghamshire, England. There is a nursery rhyme about the residents of the village being imbeciles. I had never heard the nursery rhyme and am sure many others have not either. When I hear "Gotham" I think of New York City or the fictional city that his home to Batman. And I am sure many more people have these associations than the village in Nottinghamshire. This definition should include a description (home of fools, imbeciles, simpletons, etc.), because I suspect a majority of English speakers would not have the intended association with "Gotham." And if you don't know about this meaning of Gotham, the definition doesn't help you understand the significance of "Mols" or "molboland."