Darkstorm's post in 'For Sale' calling dibs just made me wonder where that word came from. According to http://www.geocities.com/etymonline/ :

dibs - 1730, contraction of dibstone "a knucklebone or jack in a children's game," of unknown origin.

Why on earth would that term endure for almost 300 years? Is the oral culture of children that strong & enduring?

Anybody else find this interesting?

-Zeke

Interesting... as to why kids' oral culture survives? A couple of half-baked theories:

1) Kids have a longer potential lifespan than adults, therefore words that they invent or use commonly are likely to be used longer, even if the natural meaning of the word gets subverted or lost. ( I did tell you 'half-baked' !)
2) Kids tend to naturally network amongst their peers much easier than adults - and games, and hence the terminology involved spreads quicker.