Last Updated on August 24, 2017
When you’re happy about the departure of someone or something, should you wish good riddens or good riddance?
Since we’re in the heat of a presidential election campaign, I’ve already seen it happen.
A candidate announces he is “suspending”  his campaign. (For some reason, they never seem to say they’re ending it, but just suspending it, as if there’s even a snowball’s chance that the campaign will be continued at some point between their announcement and Election Day.)
Then, our overly-kind electorate begins posting about the announcement on their Facebook or Twitter pages.
Already, I’ve seen someone say, “Good riddens.”
But there’s no such thing as “riddens.” 
The phrase is Good riddance.
Riddance has two meanings, but both are related.
The first, as a noun, refers to the act of removing something, as in “getting rid”  of whatever it is. We don’t see the word used this way very often at all. But one could say, “The riddance of the criminal elements will make people in the neighborhood feel safer.”
The second, is when used in that phrasing, also as a noun, but to mean the completion of the purge. “Good riddance”  is a statement of pleasure or approval that someone or something has been removed from a situation. In around 1610, an alternate of “Good riddance”  might have been “Fair riddance,”  but by today’s standards, using good instead of fair implies a stronger sentiment.
Riddance first appeared in English, according to Merriam-Webster, some time around 1533, so it has been with us for quite a long time.
“Good Riddance”  is also the title of a Green Day song, which is better known as “Time of Your Life.”  Oddly enough, the phrase Good riddance does not appear in the lyrics of the song “Good Riddance.”  Why? You’d have to ask Green Day about that one.
Well you may see me as an idiot but riddins is a taken from ridding yourself from something. Lie riddings but short like getting changed to gettin….
I’m not sure why you’d assume I’d think you to be an idiot, Kathy.
But I’m speaking about formal writing, the kind of writing in which I hope you’d agree that “gettin” wouldn’t exactly fit, either. 🙂
So what is so wrong with writing or saying good Riddens?
What’s “so wrong” with it is “riddens” isn’t a word. (Edited.)
Patrick–At least you agree its a word. By the way, who decided what a proper word is? What credentials do they have? How do New words get created? There are lots of words out there a lot worse than Riddens that some folks think are wonderful because they date back hundreds of years. Big Deal!
Maybe every word should be up for renewal each century.
I don’t agree it’s a word. It isn’t a valid word. I said that in the post.
I haven’t read the post yet, and I know I’ll enjoy it when I do, but who in blue bloody blazes says, “ridden”?! I suspect this non-word belongs on a midden pile! Yikes! I would never be able to stop myself from correcting the idiot who said this in front of me!
Aislinge—Please try!