May 26, 1998

redd (up)

My dad frequently refers to the need to "redd up the house" (meaning to clean up the house) because of guests arriving. I've never heard anyone else use the phrase. I'm not sure I'm spelling it correctly, but that's how I've seen my dad spell it in E-mails. Did Dad make up the word, or is it a real one? Where does it come from?

The word is indeed real, and over five centuries old, and you're spelling it correctly, and are you from Pennsylvania or Ohio?

The word redd was originally a Scottish and northern English dialect word; in America is it likewise a dialect term. It is often thought to be limited to Pennsylvania, but in fact the files of the Dictionary of American Regional English show that the word is more widespread than that; the editors have decided to give redd a geographical label of "scattered, but chiefly North Midlands, especially Pennsylvania and Ohio."

Redd is first recorded in the early fifteenth century, in the sense 'to clear (a space, path, etc.)'. Other, similar senses pop up over the next few centuries: 'to disentangle'; 'to clear away'; 'to separate (combatants)', etc. The most common sense, and the one used in America, is 'to put in order; neaten; tidy', first recorded in the sixteenth century, and usually found in the phrase redd up.

The origin of redd is not entirely clear. It is probably derived from the Old English word hreddan 'to rescue; free', though it may also show the influence of any of several other words.