My father used to call me a complete idiot every time I did something wrong. I got so fed up of hearing it, that I decided to look up the origin of Idiot, and what I found out was that my father was a Moron.

There were 3 words in Medieval England used to describe an apprentices' competence, or rather incompetence. It was widely used by the various Guilds, particularly stonemasons and carpenters:

1. Idiot
2. Moron
3. Imbecile

Idiot: A person who has to be told how to do absolutely everything and cannot figure out, from what he's been shown, how to finish a basic procedure. These people were considered trainable, and could reach Journeyman status.

Moron: A person who makes the same mistake the same way every time. These people were considered problematic but under supervision were managable but would unlikely reach journeyman status.

Imbecile: A person who who finds a completely new way to make the same mistake every time. These people were considered dangerous and were only ever given menial tasks.

Complete Moron: A person who is both an Idiot and a Moron. A lost cause and only remained in the trade if they were a relative to a powerful guild member.

Complete Imbecile: A person who is an Idiot, a Moron and an Imbecile. These people were gotten rid of immediately!

There is no such thing as a complete Idiot, and since my father kept making the same mistake the same way every time, that made him a Moron.

When I showed him my findings, I told him that I would rather be an Idiot than a complete Moron like him. He never called me that again. :D

What's important to note here is that Idiot, Moron, and Imbecile were originally not used to disparage a person's intelligence but rather to give a label to their level of competence.

Message edited on: 03/24/2006 15:09

<strong>bandolin</strong><br />
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