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"do the needful" is found in British English books from the 19th century.[1] I suspect it's officialese that never went out of usage in bureaucratic and judicia

"do the needful" is found in British English books from the 19th century.[1] I suspect it's officialese that never went out of usage in bureaucratic and judicial circles in former colonies. [1] : https://www.google.com/search?q=%22do%20the%20needful%22&tbm=bks&tbs=cdr:1,cd_min:1800,cd_max:1819&lr=lang_en https://www.google.com/search?q=%22do%20the%20needful%22&tbm...

noisy_boy 5y ago
I didn't know that - thanks for sharing.
bluepizza 5y ago
This is the correct explanation. Also: it's not common, but still acceptable and not weird at all in some languages, like the Portuguese "fazer o necessário".