Talk:Chinese wall
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Whats going on with the wiktionary page? It doesn't seem to exist. Thadk 08:15, 7 March 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Etymology
Am I the only one who finds that, far from being "more likely," the second and third etymologies are almost certainly Folk etymology? Has anyone got any legitimate source for this? The OED says that it's in reference to the Great Wall, which seems far more likely. Would someone in early 20th-Century America (OED gives first use 1907) know about a custom (of dubious veracity) of Mandarins? Would he create an analogy based on the Chinese-American community's isolation--caused at this point by racist laws, not by the immigrant group's insularity? No--but everyone knows about the Great Wall of China!
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- I'm sure the name stems from the use of thin paper walls in traditonal chinese houses to separate rooms - under the basis that you should not cross the barrier, even with there being no technical force stopping you.
- I shall endevour to find reference for this concept, with the lack of proper references for the other proposed origins these should be considered for an 'edit' . The huge blockquote should be referenced to an external site aswell, wikipedia is not a source of it's own 'truthfulness' (one cannot reference themselves).
--Max power 22:18, 21 November 2005 (UTC)
