10 Great Etymological Finds
21st November 2020
Etymology is the study of the origin of words and the way in which their meanings have changed throughout history. “Etymology” itself originates from the Greek word etumos, meaning “true.” Etumologia was the study of words’ “true meanings.” This then progressed into “etymology” by way of the Old French ethimologie.
There are many words in the English language that have unexpected and fascinating origins. There are also a few with etymological origins lost in the mists of time.
We’ve listed a few of our favourite examples below.
1. Penguin (Original word: pen gwyn)
The name penguin was originally used for the great auk (a seabird found in northern oceans, now extinct). The word is believed to have come from Welsh pen gwyn, meaning ‘white head’ (or a similar phrase in the Breton or Cornish languages). The book of the Golden Hind, which sailed around the world in 1577–80, has a reference to a ‘foule’, which the Welsh men name ‘pengwin’. The bird was seen in the Magellan Straight, at the tip of South America. It is, however, possible that the sailors had mistaken penguins for great auks, or purely applied a term they knew to an unfamiliar bird they saw. The great auk looked a little bit like a penguin – it was a large flightless bird with black and white fluff that was adapted to life in freezing waters.
2. Avocado (Original word: Nahuatl)
Ready for a little surprise? The word avocado comes from the Spanish, aguacate, which in turn comes from the Nahuatl, ahuacatl, meaning testicle. It may come as a surprise at first, but the more you think about it, the more it resembles men’s soft spot. This resemblance becomes even more distinctive once you’ve seen avocado duos dangling from trees.
Nahuatl is a language of the Aztecs, native to Mexico. The language is still spoken by approximately 1.5 million people native to Mexico. It’s worth adding that avocado is not the only English word borrowed from the Nahuatl language. The list includes chilli, chocolate, tomato and guacamole.
3. Cup (Original word: cuppa)
This word originated from Late Latin, cuppa. Back in 1640 it was used for a sports trophy in the form of a cup, mainly in horse racing. Did you know that to be in ‘your cups’ is to be drunk?
4. Cappuccino (Original word: Kapuzinerkaffee)
Cappuccino is the diminutive form of the word cappuccio, which means “hood” in Italian. Cappuccino literally means “small capuchin”. You must be wondering what is the link between a hood and a cappuccino? This coffee has its name from the colour of the hooded robes worn by Capuchin Monks (dark, oak brown similar to the colour of a good cappuccino).
The first recorded use of the word was in 1790, in Vienna, Austria. Wilhelm Tissot created a recipe for a Kapuzinerkaffee (lit. “Capuchin coffee”). Kapuzinerkaffee was rather different in constitution to its modern-day successor and contained sugar, cream and egg yolks.
We are accustomed to the modern, simplified recipe which consists of espresso and foamed milk. However, there are still parts of Austria where you can order a good Kapuziner.
5. Berserk (Original word: berserkr)
The word berserk was first recognised in English in the early 19th century. As a noun it used to describe an ancient Norse warrior who fought with uncontrolled ferocity (also known as a berserker).
The English word originates from the Old Norse berserkr (noun). But the word itself derives from a combination of bjorn (bear) and serkr (coat) or from berr ‘bare’ (i.e. without armour) and serkr. It is now mostly used in the expression ‘to go berserk’.
6. Salary (Original word: salarium)
The word “salary” comes from the Latin salarium, meaning “salt money.”
In ancient times, salt was often referred to as “white gold.” It could be used for many things: an antiseptic to treat wounds, to preserve food, and also as a method of payment in Greece and Rome.
In the Egyptian Empire, laborers were paid with salt that they could use to preserve their food.
The Roman Empire continued using this form of payment, but it took on the name “salary” for “that which was given to workers at the end of the working month”.
7. Whiskey (Original word: aqua vitae)
In the Medieval times the monks called whiskey aqua vitae, which mean “life water”.
The expression was transformed into uisce beatha when it was transferred to Gaelic.
When the word was anglicised, uisce evolved into uige, usque, and then uisky, which stands an obvious and close resemblance to “whiskey.”
You can spell the drink two different ways, either “whiskey” or “whisky.”
Some people believe the extra “e” was added to by Irish and American distilleries to differentiate their higher quality whiskeys during a period when Scottish whisky had a bad reputation.
The word “whiskey” has been adopted in other countries for quite different reasons. In some South American countries, it’s used as an alternative to “cheese” to encourage people to smile when being photographed!
8. Soccer
The word soccer comes from an abbreviation for Association plus the addition of the suffix –er.
This was also applied to ‘shortened’ nouns, in order to form jocular words. These words include rugger (rugby), brekker (for breakfast), bonner (for bonfire), and cupper (a series of intercollegiate matches played in competition for a cup).
9. Jeans
Although the invention of jeans is commonly attributed to Jacob W. Davis and Levi Strauss, the etymology suggest they are of European origin.
The fabric Strauss used for his original trousers was first produced in Genoa, Italy and Nimes, France. Why’s that important?
The French word for Genoa is Gênes, and the name “jeans” is likely an anglicisation of the material’s city of origin. Similarly, the word “denim” most likely comes from de Nimes, meaning “from Nimes” in French.
Workers in Northern Italy were wearing jeans as early as the 17th century, long before post-war Americans.
10. Hair of the dog
The phrase ‘hair of the dog’ is a version of ‘hair of the dog that bit you’. The early English medical history suggests that rubbing the hair of a particular dog or other animal into the wound of its bite will cure the ill effects and subsequently heal the wound.
The phrase then settled down as a hangover remedy. Having a few more drinks after a heavy night out is said to cure the effects of a hangover.
