Notes and Queries, Number 54, November 9 1850

Notes and Queries (originally subtitled A Medium of Inter- Communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc) is a London-based, quarterly publication, part academic journal, part correspondence magazine, in which scholars and interested amateurs can exchange knowledge on literature and history. Notes and Queries was first published in 1849 as a weekly periodical edited by William John Thoms. The format consisted of "Notes" (miscellaneous thoughts from correspondents that they and the editors considered of interest to the readership), and "Queries" (and responses to queries), which formed the bulk of the publication. There were numerous regional versions of Notes and Queries throughout Britain (e. g., Somerset and Dorset Notes and Queries) and three incarnations of American Notes and Queries. Many of the entries in the journal for its first seventy years were but a few paragraphs long, and occasionally as short as a sentence or two. A very frequent contributor was the Rev. Walter W. Skeat, one of the most important figures in the field of English etymology.