Annotation:Twig the Mercer
TWIG THE MERCER. English, Country Dance Tune (2/4 time). E Mixolydian. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. The melody is unique to London publishers Charles and Samuel Thompson’s 1757 country dance collection. There's no indication if the word 'twig' in the title refers to a proper name, or whether it is used as a slang verb. In the latter context, the first citation in Green’s (to “observe, watch”) is from the 1754 play The Brave Irishman, by the (Irish) Thomas Sheridan: “Twig his boots," which would place the meaning of the title in English slang usage as roughly 'watch (out) for the merchant'. Stan Carey has argued that 'twig' derived from the Irish tuig, meaning “understand.”
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