GDG- Re: Copse vs Coppice... whose on frst?

[Richard M Kadas]

Correction?
  It was mentioned because of my own interest in whether the seeming interchageability of coppice and copse was intentional or even mattered.. In researching the topic I discovered that my Merrian Webster Unabridged dictionary 1955 edition considers copse to be a shortened version of coppice. A website devoted to arbor culture, http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-cop1.htm, clearely describes the purpose and utility of a coppice.
  A coppice is not just any woodland area, but one which is productively managed in a special way. Trees are cut down and encouraged to grow again from the stump. (In fact, the idea of cutting is inherent in the word, as it comes from the Greek kolaphos, “blow”, via the Latin verb colpare, “to cut with a blow”; copse is a variant form that appeared in the sixteenth century as the result of what’s called grammatical syncopation, or missing a sound out of a word). Coppicing produces a large number of thin stems, which are harvested on a regular cycle of about five to fifteen years. A common species that was coppiced was hazel, which supplied wood to make hurdles, brushes and besom brooms; oak was coppiced to supply bark for the tanning industry. Other common coppiced species in Britain were the wych-elm and the ash, often used for tool handles and the like. 
   
  Nevertheless it doesn't seem to make much difference as most of the writers about GB merely wanted to indicate the  small stand of trees that was used as the center of gravity  for the PPT assault.
  Dick
  

DShultz180 at aol.com wrote:
  Esteemed GDG Member Contributes:


> <> 
> 
Yup 1) Copse: n "a coppice." 2) Copse of Woods: n. "a coppice." 3) coppice: n 
" a wood of small trees, grown mostly for periodical cutting [O. F. 
copeiz]. 

The present day "Copse of Trees" was nothing more then one of a thousand 
woodlots scattered about GB that were owned by both farmers and folks for fuel to 
heat homes and to cook. Coppice is the term used by many of those who fought 
and wrote about that particular woodlot. Aside from am unkept woodlot there was 
rocks and junk scattered about. Not sure of the European form, Dick, but 
Meade referred to it early on as a coppice.

Thank you for the correction,

Dave


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