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Girl Friday where did it come from?

Posted by Lotg on May 15, 2003

In Reply to: Girl Friday where did it come from? posted by Low Rider on May 15, 2003

: Can someone tell me where the saying "Girl Friday" came from?

: Isn't it derived from Man Friday? Wasn't Man Friday the all rounder assistant who could do anything in Robinson Crusoe? And when you hire a Girl Friday, it's because you want an all rounder in the office.

I probably shouldn't even be attempting to answer this, as I've never read the story. Given it's such a classic, that would no doubt astound some of the 'wordy' people who visit this site. But I've spent a lifetime avoiding reading due to an unusual eye muscular problem. I taught myself to only read what I absolutely had to, because it was too painful. So fiction was a luxury I couldn't afford to read. Recently however, they found a way to fix this problem and I have now been making up for lost time reading everything in sight. But I haven't yet read Robinson Crusoe.

Consequently famous stories such as Robinson Crusoe, are only stories about which I've heard snippets. And consequently, I've heard of Man Friday. So if my explanation is way off - well that's why, and like to be enlightened.

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