word order - Is it "Don't let's" or "Let's don't"?


On Downton Abbey, I heard Mrs. Crawley say:



"Don't let's make a thing out of it!"



On The Goodwife, I heard Dianne Lockhart say:



"Let's don't invite trouble for ourselves."



It seems that both of these are saying, "let's not."




  1. What is the correct way to say this? "Let's don't"? Or "don't let's"? Or are they both right?




  2. What is the basis of this grammar? Is it proper?





Answer



From the Cambridge Dictionary:





  • There are two negative forms of let’s: let’s not and don’t let’s. Let’s not is more common:




    • Let’s not argue about money. We can share the costs.




    • Don’t let’s throw away the good books with the damaged ones. We can sell them.







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