"P van Rijckevorsel"
[snip]
Only in the last few centuries it has been demoted to an animal food.

donald j haarmann schreef
Not in North America!

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Surely use as a human food is not widespread in the US today?
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Stem "corn"?!
Not what my dictionary says!!
OE æern, æcren - mast, oak mast.
donald j haarmann

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Wrong dictionary.
As words go this one has got a fairly respectable age:
it is pre-Norman invasion.
Look again.
PvR