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Sections Home Page Local News AP News AP Entertainment Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Photo Gallery Readers Photo Gallery Sports Tempo Weather Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Distinctly Northwest Readers' Choice Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Holiday Guide Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend March 22, 2006 Since You Asked ‘Scot-free’ has Norse roots, not Scottish When somebody gets away with something altogether, why do we say he gets off "Scot-free?" What does this have to do with Scotland? — Bob G., Medford Oddly enough, Bob, nothing at all. The expression comes to us more or less directly from the Old English scotfre , which goes back about 1,000 years. In those days before the Norman invasion brought the French to England, if a commoner was scotfre, he didn’t pay royal taxes. The word probably came from the Old Norse skot , or contribution. The church scot , or church tax, was paid on St. Martin’s Day (Nov. 11) to support parish priests. By the later Middle Ages scot had also come to mean the tab at a tavern. Craig M. Carver’s "A History of English in Its Own Words" cites as possible sources the sceat, a silver Anglo-Saxon coin, and skeud, an Indo-European verb meaning to shoot or throw. Send questions to "Since You Asked," Mail Tribune Newsroom, P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501; by fax to 541-776-4376; or by e-mail to Since You Asked ">[email protected] . We’re sorry, but the volume of questions received prevents us from answering all of them. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback online casinos news Home Security Systems Online Casino Reviews Men's Clothing Fundraisers UK Homeowner Loans Discount Hotel Reservations Send Flowers Casinos Canada Texas Electric Choice Compare Electric rates in Texas Windermere Van Vleet Trunks, Footlocker Online poker at AbsolutePoker.com Advertisement s