Timeline for What's the origin of the saying, "There's no accounting for taste"?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
14 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Mar 10, 2016 at 22:04 | comment | added | Jon Purdy | It seems clear to me that the same phrase can easily be used in earnest (taste is subjective) or sarcastically (your taste is weird) in any language. | |
| Mar 10, 2016 at 21:54 | comment | added | TimR | The earliest attestation I can find for "no accounting for taste" is a 1765 translation from the French of Bellegarde's Models of Conversation for Persons of Polite Education | |
| Jan 24, 2015 at 0:28 | comment | added | Henry74 | I'm very late to the party here, but I want to know the origin of the specific English wording. Whether it was meant as a direct translation or not, the meanings are distinctly different. One is sort of philosophical, i.e. taste is by definition purely subjective and argument is by definition meant to be objective. The other is usually used as a ("pithy"-@FumbleFingers) slight, and means something more like, I don't know where your strange taste comes from. So, anyone know where/when the English version came into being? | |
| Jul 8, 2011 at 13:00 | comment | added | Dr. belisarius | The Spanish version is Sobre gustos no hay nada escrito meaning On taste, nothing is written. Where_written_ is an ancient way of referring to the law. | |
| Jul 7, 2011 at 20:36 | comment | added | FumbleFingers | ...anyway, I've taken my shots and deleted my answer, since it's obviously getting up people's noses. | |
| Jul 7, 2011 at 20:35 | comment | added | FumbleFingers | @Joe Blow: I guess. Although my first reaction on reading the Latin version would probably be "Oh! They had the same insight we do!". And mentally translate their version as "You can't argue with matters of taste", not see it as the "original" version of our saying. Surely in several hundred years it could have occured to someone to say our (quite pithy) version without needing to see a similar sentiment expressed in Latin. | |
| Jul 7, 2011 at 20:20 | comment | added | Fattie | @Fumble, hmm, but the guy is simply asking "What's the origin?" It's a figure of speech - so, what's the origin? Seems like a reasonable question. (I for one did not know it was a "latin phrase," but that interests me. It would be interesting to furthermore learn what historical period it originated in - but it appears we just don't know that.) I believe I understand what you are asserting, you repeat it is a simple observation and hence (I believe you mean) it's rather "sub- figure-of-speech." But it is a figure of speech - so what's the origin? | |
| Jul 7, 2011 at 18:58 | comment | added | FumbleFingers | @Joe Blow: I've heard it and said it all my life, it seems. I just don't think "the Romans said it", or "the priests said it" means much for a simple observation like this. | |
| Jul 7, 2011 at 18:33 | comment | added | Fattie | @Fumble - it's weird that you have not frequently heard this figure of speech. | |
| Jul 7, 2011 at 18:29 | vote | accept | Joshua Karstendick | ||
| Jul 7, 2011 at 16:07 | comment | added | FumbleFingers | Umm. Probably not a "Roman proverb" then. But even if it was, in the end this is simply an obvious thing to say - regardless of what language it was first said in. | |
| Jul 7, 2011 at 15:53 | history | edited | Jon Purdy | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
added 224 characters in body
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| Jul 7, 2011 at 15:48 | comment | added | Mitch | Jinx! Well, you got it first. | |
| Jul 7, 2011 at 15:46 | history | answered | Jon Purdy | CC BY-SA 3.0 |