These two venerable words were used by our ancestors. Every one has
heard of Gammer Gurton; Gaffer Gingerbread was also famous in, as well
as I can remember, a portion of the literature which amused my
childhood. In _Joseph Andrews_, Fielding styles the father of Pamela
"Gaffer Andrews:" and, for aught I know, the word may be still in use in
Wilts and Somerset.
Unde derivantur _Gaffer_ and _Gammer_? Lye said they were _quasi_
good-father and good-mother; Somner, that they were the Anglo-Saxon
_Gefæder_ and _Gemeder_, i. e. godfather and godmother; Webster derives
the former from the Hebrew _geber_, man, the latter from the
Scandinavian _gamel_, old. Having a fondness for simplicity, I go less
learnedly to work. I have observed little children, when commencing to
speak, to say "ganpa" and "gamma" for grandpapa and grandmamma: whence I
conjecture that, in the olden time, ere we had Pa's and Ma's, the little
aspirants used to say "ganfa'er" and "gamma'er," which easily became
_Gaffer_ and _Gammer_. I am confirmed in this view by a friend to whom I
mentioned it, and who told me that his own children always called his
father _gaffer_, a word entirely of their own formation.
There is a term now coming a little into use, which is I believe of pure
Irish origin, namely, _old fogie_. Indeed, I have heard it used rather
disrespectfully of those mature old warriors, whom it pleases the wisdom
of our government to send out in the command of our fleets and armies.
The word, as I said, is of Irish, or rather of Dublin birth. The _old
fogies_ are the inmates of the Royal or Old Men's Hospital, the Irish
Chelsea. I think, then, that it must be plain to every one that the term
is nothing more than a good-humoured corruption or diminutive of _old
folks_.
This leads me to the simple origin of a word which seems to have posed
all our etymologists--it has done so to Richardson at least--namely,
"PETTIFOGGER, a low, tricky attorney." According to my view,
_pettifogger_ is neither more nor less than _pettifolker_, i. e. one
whose practice lies among the _petty folk_, small tradesmen,
day-labourers, and such like. This derivation, too, has simplicity in
its favour.