Sir, – A letter writer asking about a perceived increase in the use of the phrase “tributes have been paid” wonders if it is due to an editorial decision while struggling to identify when it crept into usage (Letters, October 1st). For anyone inclined to ask such questions, an online service called Google Ngram is worth knowing about. It often indicates that all that has changed is that you’ve begun to notice the phrase rather than that its usage has changed. It’s worth noting, however, that it primarily searches books, so radio and other media will not be included.
Nonetheless a search of the phrase “tributes have been paid” is a remarkably insightful and, perhaps, reassuring one. There are tiny numbers of citations going back to the 1850s and 1880s. More interestingly though a large uptick in its usage began in 1913 peaking in 1918, precisely tracking the period of the Great War. It then declined in usage until a second, much larger wave began in the 1930s. This peaked in 1947 and then declined quite rapidly. The correlation with the second World War is striking. It has never reached anything close to those levels since, and on a positive note, recent data shows a flat and low level of usage.
I’m inclined to agree though that the phase seems very common now and suspect it is due to its usage on radio news. I often feel a degree of sympathy for those who write the material for news readers, particularly those in media with a bulletin every 30 minutes. By definition the story is only in the literal sense “new” the first few times. I reckon that may explain the rationale for the use of “tributes have been paid”. One can only report the fact of a death a few times, but the payment of tributes can run for days as a news item. – Yours, etc,
BRIAN O’BRIEN,
Kinsale,
Co Cork.