FOOTNOTES:

"And telling me, the sovereign'st thing on earthWasparmacetifor an inward bruise."(1Henry IV., i. 3.)

"And telling me, the sovereign'st thing on earthWasparmacetifor an inward bruise."

(1Henry IV., i. 3.)

he derives from Parma, which has given its name toparmesancheese. On the wordcockney[144]he waxes anecdotic, always a fatal thing in an etymologist—

"Cockney, orcockny, applied only to one borne within the sound of Bow-bell, that is, within the City of London, which tearme came first out of this tale: That a cittizens sonne riding with his father out of London into the country, and being a novice and meerely ignorant how corne or cattell increased, asked, when he heard a horseneigh, what the horse did; his father answered, the horse dothneigh; riding farther he heard acockecrow, and said, doth thecocke neightoo?"

EARLY ETYMOLOGISTS

Molière often makes fun of the etymologists of his time and has rather unfairly caricatured, as Vadius inLes Femmes savantes, the great scholar Gilles Ménage, whoseDictionnaire étymologique, published in 1650, was long a standard work. Molière's mockery and the fantastic nature of some of Ménage's etymologies have combined to make him a butt for the ignorant, but it may be doubted whether any modern scholar, using the same implements, could have done better work. For Ménage the one source of the Romance languages was classical Latin, and every word had to be traced to a Latin word of suitable form or sense. Thus Fr.haricot[145]is connected by him with Lat.faba, a bean,viathe conjectural "forms"*fabarius,*fabaricus,*fabaricotus,*faricotus,*haricotus, a method to which no problem is insoluble.[146]He suggests that Fr.geindre, orgindre,[147]baker's man, comes from Lat.gener, son-in-law, because the baker's man always marries the baker's daughter; but this practice, common though it may be, is not of sufficiently unfailing regularity to constitute a philological law. Perhaps his greatest achievement was the derivation of Span.alfana,[148]a mare, from Lat.equus, a horse, which inspired a well-known epigram—

"Alfanavient d'equus, sans doute,Mais il faut avouer aussiQu'en venant de là jusqu'iciIl a bien changé sur la route."

These examples show that respect for Ménage need not prevent his work from being a source of innocent merriment. But the above epigram loses some ofits point for modern philologists, to whom equations that look equally fantastic,e.g.Eng.wheeland Gk.κύκλος,[149]are matters of elementary knowledge. On the other hand, a close resemblance between words of languages that are not nearly related is proof presumptive, and almost positive, that the words are quite unconnected. The resemblance between Eng.nutand Ger.Nussis the resemblance of first cousins, but the resemblance of both to Lat.nuxis accidental. Even in the case of languages that are near akin, it is not safe to jump to conclusions. The Greek cousin of Lat.deusis notθεός, God, butΖεύς, Jupiter.

ANECDOTIC ETYMOLOGY

An etymology that has anything to do with a person or an anecdote is to be regarded with suspicion. For both we want contemporary evidence, and, in the case of an anecdote, we never, to the best of my knowledge, get it. InChapter III.are a number of instances of words formed according to authentic evidence from names of persons. But the old-fashioned etymologist will not be denied his little story. Thus, in explanation ofspencer(p.40), I find in a manual of popular information of the last century,[150]that—

"His Lordship, when Lord-lieutenant of Ireland, being out a-hunting, had, in the act of leaping a fence, the misfortune to have one of the skirts of his coat torn off; upon which his lordship tore off the other, observing, that to have but one left was like a pig with one ear! Some inventive genius took the hint, and having made some of these half-coats, out of compliment to his lordship, gave them the significant cognomen ofSpencer!"

This is what Pooh-Bah calls "corroborative detail intended to give artistic verisimilitude to a bald and unconvincing narrative." From the same authority we learn that—

"Hurly-burly[151]is said to owe its origin to Hurleigh and Burleigh, two neighbouring families, that filled the country around them with contest and violence."

and that—

"The wordboh!used to frighten children, was the name of Boh, a great general, the son of Odin, whose very appellation struck immediate panic in his enemies."[152]

The history ofchouseexemplifies the same tendency. There is no doubt that it comes from a Turkish word meaning interpreter, speltchausin Hakluyt andchiausby Ben Jonson. The borrowing is parallel to that ofcozen(p.110), interpreters having a reputation little superior to that of horse-dealers. But a century and a half after the introduction of the word we come across a circumstantial story of a Turkishchiauswho swindled some London merchants of a large sum in 1609, the year before Jonson used the word in theAlchemist. "Corroborative detail" again. The story may be true, but there is not an atom of evidence for it, and Skinner, who suggests the correct derivation in hisEtymologicon(1671), does not mention it. Until contemporary evidence is adduced, the story must be regarded as one of those fables which have been invented in dozens by early etymologists, and which are perpetuated in popular works of reference. It is an article of faith in Yorkshire that the coarse materialcalledmungoowes its name to the inventor of the machine used in its fabrication, who, when it stuck at a first trial, exclaimed with resolution, "Itmun go."

Many stories have been composedaprès coupto explain the Americanhoodlumand the Australianlarrikin, which are both older than ourhooligan(see p.12). The origin ofhoodlumis quite obscure. The story believed in Australia with regard tolarrikinis that an Irish policeman, giving evidence of the arrest of a rough, explained that the accused wasa-larrikin'(larking) in the street, and this was misunderstood by a reporter. But there appears to be not the slightest foundation for this story. The word is perhaps a diminutive of the common Irish nameLarry, also immortalised in the stirring ballad—

"The night beforeLarrywas stretched."

As I write, there is a correspondence going on in the Nottingham papers as to the origin of the nicknameBendigo, borne by a local bruiser and evangelist. According to one account, he was one of triplets, whom a jocular friend of the family nicknamed Shadrach, Meschach, andAbed-Nego, the last of which was the future celebrity. It is at any rate certain that his first challenge (Bell's Life, 1835) was signed "Abed-Nego of Nottingham." The rival theory is that, when he was playing in the streets and his father appeared in the offing, his companions used to warn him by crying "Bendy go!" This theory disregards the assertion of the "oldest inhabitant" that the great man was never calledBendy, and the fact, familiar to any observer of the local dialect, that, even if he had been so called, the form of warning would have been, "Look aht, Bendy, yer daddy's a-coomen."

In the Supplement to Littré there is an article ondomino, in which he points out that investigation must start from the phrasefaire domino(see p.102). He also quotes an absurd anecdote from a local magazine, which professes to come from a "vieille chronique." Littré naturally wants to know what chronicle. In Scheler'sDictionnaire étymologique(Brussels, 1888), it is "proved," by means of the same story elaborated, "que c'est là la véritable origine du mot dont nous parlons."

ANECDOTIC ETYMOLOGY

In Brewer'sDictionary of Phrase and Fable, s.v.sirloin, we read that "it is generally said that James I. or Charles II. knighted the loin of beef, but Henry VIII. had done so already." This sounds like a determination to get at the root of things, but does not go far enough. The word is found in the 15th century, and Fr.surlonge, from which it comes, in the 14th. It is compounded ofsur, over, andlonge, a derivative of Lat.lumbus, loin. The belief in the knightly origin of thesirloinwas so strong that we find it playfully called thebaronet(Tom Jones, iv. 10). Hence, no doubt, the namebaronof beef for the double sirloin.Tramis persistently connected with a MrOutram, who flourished about 1800. This is another case of intelligent anticipation, for the word is found in 1555. It means log or beam, and was probably first applied to a log-road laid across bad ground, what is called in America a "corduroy" road. On the other hand, the obvious and simple derivation ofbeef-eater,i.e.a man who is in the enviable position of being sure of his daily allowance,[153]has been obscured by the invention of animaginary Fr.*beaufetier, waiter at the side-board. Professor Skeat attributes the success of this myth to its inclusion in Mrs Markham'sHistory of England. But the most indestructible of all these superstitions is connected with the wordcabal. It comes from a Hebrew word meaning hidden mystery, and is found in the chief Romance languages. The word is of frequent occurrence in English long before the date of Charles II.'s acrostic ministry,[154]though its modern meaning has naturally been affected by this historic connection.

Even anecdotic etymologies accepted by the most cautious modern authorities do not always inspire complete confidence.Martinetis supposed to come from the name of a well-known French officer who re-organised the French infantry about 1670. But we find it used by Wycherley in 1676, about forty years before Martinet's death. Moreover this application of the name is unknown in French, which has, however, a wordmartinetmeaning a kind of cat-o'-nine-tails. In Englishmartinetmeans the leech-line of a sail, hence, possibly, rope's end, and Wycherley applies the term to a brutal sea-captain. The most renowned of carriers is probably Hobson, of Cambridge. He was sung by Milton, and bequeathed to the town Hobson's conduit which cleanses the Cambridge gutters. To him is also ascribed the phraseHobson's choice, from his custom of refusing to let out his horses except in strict rotation. But we find a merchant venturer, living in Japan, using "Hodgson'schoice" fourteen years before thecarrier left this world and became a legendary figure—

"We are put toHodgson's choiseto take such previlegese as they will geve us, or else goe without."(Correspondence of Richard Cocks, Oct. 1617.)

"We are put toHodgson's choiseto take such previlegese as they will geve us, or else goe without."

(Correspondence of Richard Cocks, Oct. 1617.)

BACK-FORMATIONS

The most obvious etymology needs to be proved up to the hilt, and the process is rich in surprises.Cambridgeappears to be thebridgeover theCam. But the river's older name, which it preserves above the town, is theGranta, and Bede calls the town itselfGrantacester. Camden, in hisBritannia(trad. Holland, 1637), notes that the county was called "in the English Saxon"Grentbrigseyre, and comments on the double name of the river. Nor can he "easily beleeve thatGrantwas turned intoCam; for this might seeme a deflexion some what too hardly streined, wherein all the letters but one are quite swallowed up."Grantabriggebecame, by dissimilation (see p.57),Gantabrigge,Cantabrigge(cf.Cantab),Cantbrigge, and, by assimilation (see p.56),Cambridge, the river being rechristened from the name of the town.

Abeggaris not etymologically one whobegs, or acadgerone whocadges. In each case the verb is evolved from the noun. About the year 1200 Lambert leBègue, the Stammerer, is said to have founded a religious order in Belgium. The monks were called after him in medieval Latinbeghardiand the nunsbeghinæ. The Old Fr.begardpassed into Anglo-French with the meaning of mendicant and gave ourbeggar. Frombéguinewe getbiggin, a sort of cap—

"Sleep with it (the crown) now!Yet not so sound, and half so deeply sweet,As he, whose brow with homelybigginbound,Snores out the watch of night."(2Henry IV., iv. 4.)

"Sleep with it (the crown) now!Yet not so sound, and half so deeply sweet,As he, whose brow with homelybigginbound,Snores out the watch of night."

(2Henry IV., iv. 4.)

Cadger, or rather its Scottish formcadgear, a pedlar, occursabout one hundred and fifty years earlier than the verb tocadge. We find, noted as foreign words, in 16th-century Dutch, the wordscagie, a basket carried on the back, andcagiaerd, one who carries such a basket. These must be of French origin, and come, like the obsolete Eng.cadge,[155]a panier, fromcage, for the history of which see p.109.Cadgeris used in Scottish of an itinerant fish merchant with his goods carried in paniers by a pony—

"Or die acadgerpownie's death,At some dyke-back."(Burns,Epistle to J. Lapraik.)

"Or die acadgerpownie's death,At some dyke-back."

(Burns,Epistle to J. Lapraik.)

Tobaccodoes not take its name from the island of Tobago, but from the native name of the tube through which the Caribs smoked it.

The traditional derivation ofvauntis from Fr.vanter, and this from a late Lat.vanitare, to talk emptily, used by St Augustine. This looks very simple, but the real history of these words is most complicated. In Mid. English we regularly findavaunt, which comes from Old Fr.avanter, to put forward, fromavant, before. This gets mixed up during the Tudor period with anothervauntfrom Fr.vanter, to extol, the derivation of which can only be settled when its earliest form is ascertained. At present we findventeras early asvanter, and this would represent Lat.venditare(frequentative ofvendere, to sell), to push one's goods, "to do anything before men to set forth himselfe and have a prayse; tovaunt; to crake; to brag" (Cooper).

ETYMOLOGICAL TESTS

A sound etymology must fulfil three conditions. It must not violate the recognised laws of sound change. The development of meaning must be clearly traced. This must start from the earliest or fundamental sense of the word. It goes without saying that in modern corruptions we are sometimes faced by cases which it would be difficult to explain phonetically (see p.136). There are, in fact, besides the general phonetic and semantic laws, a number of obscure and accidental influences at work which are not yet codified. As we have seen (p.188), complete apparent dissimilarity of sound and sense need not prevent two words from being originally one[156]; but we have to trace them both back until dissimilarity becomes first similarity and then identity.

The wordperusemeant originally to wear out, Old Fr.par-user. In the 16th century it means to sort or sift, especially herbs, and hence to scrutinise a document, etc. But between the earliest meaning and that of sifting there is a gap which no ingenuity can bridge, and, until this is done, we are not justified in regarding the modernperuseas identical with the earlier.[157]

The maxim of Jakob Grimm, "von den Wörtern zu den Sachen," is too often neglected. In dealing withthe etymology of a word which is the name of an object or of an action, we must first find out exactly what the original object looked like or how the original action was performed. The etymologist must either be an antiquary or must know where to go for sound antiquarian information. I will illustrate this by three words denoting objects used by medieval or Elizabethan fighting men.

A fencingfoilis sometimes vaguely referred to the verbfoil, to baffle, with which it has no connection. The Fr.feuille, leaf, is also invoked, and compared with Fr.fleuret, a foil, the idea being that the name was given to the "button" at the point. Now the earliestfoilsandfleuretswere not buttoned; first, because they were pointless, and secondly, because the point was not used in early fencing. It was not until gunpowder began to bring about the disuse of heavy armour that anybody ever dreamt of thrusting. The earliest fencing was hacking with sword and buckler, and the earlyfoilwas a rough sword-blade quite unlike the implement we now use.Fleuretmeant in Old French a sword-blade not yet polished and hilted, and we find it used, as we do Eng.foil, of an apology for a sword carried by a gallant very much down at heel. As late as Cotgrave we findfloret, "a foile; a sword with theedgerebated." Thereforefoilis the same as Fr.feuille,[158]which in Old French meant sword-blade, and is still used for the blade of a saw; but the name has nothing to do with what did not adorn the tip. It is natural that Fr.feuilleshould be applied, like Eng.leaf,blade, to anything flat (cf.Ger.Blatt, leaf), and we find in 16th-century Dutch the borrowed wordfolie, used in the three senses of leaf, metal plate, broadsword, which is conclusive.

PETRONEL

We find frequent allusions in the 16th and 17th centuries to a weapon called apetronel, a flint-lock fire-arm intermediate in size between an arquebus and a pistol. It occurs several times in Scott—

"'Twas then I fired mypetronel,And Mortham, steed and rider, fell."(Rokeby, i. 19.)

"'Twas then I fired mypetronel,And Mortham, steed and rider, fell."

(Rokeby, i. 19.)

On the strength of a French form,poitrinal, it has been connected with Fr.poitrine, chest, and various explanations are given. The earliest is that of the famous Huguenot surgeon Ambroise Paré, who speaks of the "mousquetspoitrinals, que l'on ne couche en joue, à cause de leur calibre gros et court, mais qui se tirentde la poitrine." I cannot help thinking that, if the learned author had attempted this method of discharging an early fire-arm, his anatomical experience, wide as it was, would have been considerably enlarged. Minsheu (1617) describes apetronellas "a horseman's peece first used in the Pyrenean mountaines, which hanged them alwayesat their breast, readie to shoote, as they doe now at the horse's breast." This information is derived from Claude Fauchet, whose interestingAntiquités françoises et gauloiseswas published in 1579. Phillips, in hisNew World of Words(1678) tells us that this "kind of harquebuse, or horseman's piece, is so called, because it is to aimat a horse's brest, as it werepoictronel." When we turn from fiction to fact, we find that the oldest French name waspétrinal, explained by Cotgrave as "apetronell, or horse-man's peece." It was occasionally corrupted, perhaps owing to the way in which the weapon was slung, intopoitrinal. This corruption would be facilitated by the 16th-century pronunciation ofoi(peitrine). The French word is borrowed either from Ital.petronello,pietronello, "a petronell" (Florio), or from Span.pedreñal, "apetronall, a horse-man's peece, ita dict. quodsilice petraincenditur" (Minsheu,Spanish Dictionary, 1623). Thus Minsheu knew the origin of the word, though he had put the fiction in his earlier work. We find other forms in Italian and Spanish, but they all go back to Ital.pietra,petra, or Span.piedra,pedra, stone, flint. The usual Spanish word for flint ispedernal. Our word, as its form shows, came direct from Italian.[159]The new weapon was named from its chief feature;cf.Ger.Flinte, "a light gun, a hand-gun, pop-gun, arquebuss, fire-arm, fusil or fusee"[160](Ludwig). The substitution of the flint-lock for the old match-lock brought about a re-naming of European fire-arms, and, as this substitution was first effected in the cavalry,petronelacquired the special meaning of horse-pistol. It is curious that, while we find practically all the French and Italian fire-arm names in 17th-century German, a natural result of the Thirty Years' War,petroneldoes not appear to be recorded. The reason is probably that the Germans had their own name, viz.,Schnapphahn, snap-cock, the English form of which,snaphaunce, seems also to have prevailed overpetronel. Cotgrave hasarquebuse à fusil, "asnaphaunce," and explainsfusilas "a fire-steele for a tinder-box." This is medieval Lat.focile, fromfocus, fire, etc.

HELMETS

The most general name for a helmet up to about 1450 wasbasnet, orbacinet. This, as its name implies (see p.156), was a basin-shaped steel cap worn by fighting men of all ranks. The knights and nobles wore itundertheir great ornamental helms.[161]Thebasnetitself was perfectly plain. About the end of the 16th century the usual English helmets were theburgonetandmorion.[162]These were often very decorative, as may be seen by a visit to any collection of old armour. Spenser speaks of a "guilt engravenmorion" (Faerie Queene, vii. 7). Between the basnet and these reigned thesaletorsalade, on which Jack Cade puns execrably—

"Wherefore, on a brick wall have I climbed into this garden, to see if I can eat grass, or pick asalletanother while, which is not amiss to cool a man's stomach this hot weather. And I think this wordsalletwas born to do me good, for many a time, but for asallet, my brain-pan had been cleft with a brown-bill."(2Henry VI., iv. 10.)

(2Henry VI., iv. 10.)

It comes, through Fr.salade, from Ital.celata, "a scull, a helmet, a morion, asallat, a headpiece" (Florio). The etymologists of the 17th century, familiar with the appearance of "guilt engraven morions," connected it with Lat.cælare, to engrave, and this derivation has been repeated ever since without examination. Now in the Tower of London Armoury is a large collection ofsalets, and these, with the exception of one or two late German specimens from the ornate period, are plain steel caps of the simplest form and design. Thesaletwas, in fact, thebasnetslightly modified, worn by the rank and file of 15th-century armies, and probably,like thebasnet, worn under the knight's tilting helm. There is no Italian verbcelare, to engrave, but there is a very common verbcelare, to conceal. A steel cap was also called in Italiansecreta, "a thinne steele cap, or close skull, worne under a hat" (Florio), and in Old Frenchsegrette, "an yron skull, or cap of fence" (Cotgrave). Both words are confirmed by Duez, who, in hisItalian-French Dictionary(1660), hassecreta, "une secrette, ou segrette, un morion, une bourguignotte, armure de teste pour les picquiers." Ergo, thesaletbelongs to Lat.celare, to hide, secrete.

We nowcaulka ship by forcing oakum into the seams. Hence the verb tocaulkis explained as coming from Mid. Eng.cauken, to tread, Old Fr.cauquer,caucher, Lat.calcare, fromcalx, heel. This makes the process somewhat acrobatic, although this is not, philologically, a very serious objection. But wecaulkthe ship or the seams, not the oakum. Primitivecaulkingconsisted in plastering a wicker coracle with clay. The earliestcaulkeron record is Noah, who pitched[163]his ark within and without with pitch. In the Vulgate (Genesis, vi. 14), thepitchis calledbitumenand the verb islinere, "to daub, besmear, etc." Next in chronological order comes the mother of Moses, who "took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch" (Exodus, ii. 3),bitumine ac picein the Vulgate. Bitumen, or mineral pitch, was regularly applied to this purpose, even by Elizabethan seamen. Failing this, anything sticky and unctuous was used,e.g., clay or lime.Limenow means usually calcium oxide, but its original sense is anything viscous;cf.Ger.Leim, glue, and our bird-lime. The oldest example of the verb tocaulkis about 1500. InMid. English we find tolimeused instead,e.g., in reference to the ark—

"Set andlimedagen the flood" (c. 1250),

and—

"Lymeit with cleye and pitche within and without." (Caxton, 1483.)

Ourcaulkis in medieval Latincalcare, and this represents a rare Latin verbcalicare, to plaster with lime, fromcalx, lime. Almost every language which has a nautical vocabulary uses for ourcaulka verb related to Fr.calfater. This is of Spanish or Portuguese origin. The Portuguese word iscalafetar, fromcal, lime, andafeitar, to put in order, trim, etc.

GHOST-WORDS

The readiness of lexicographers to copy from each other sometimes leads to ludicrous results. The origin of the wordcurmudgeonis quite unknown; but, when Dr Johnson was at work on his dictionary, he received from an unknown correspondent the suggestion that it was a corruption of Fr.cœur méchant, wicked heart. Accordingly we find in his dictionary, "It is a vitious manner of pronouncingcœur méchant, Fr. an unknown correspondent." John Ash, LL.D., who published a very complete dictionary in 1775, gives the derivation "from the Frenchcœur, unknown, andméchant, a correspondent," an achievement which, says Todd, "will always excite both in foreigners and natives a harmless smile!"

It is thus that "ghost-words" come into existence. Every considerable English dictionary, from Spelman'sGlossarium(1664) onward, has the entryabacot, "a cap of state, wrought up into the shape of two crowns, worn formerly by English kings." This "word" will no longer appear in dictionaries, the editor of theNew EnglishDictionaryhaving laid this particular ghost.[164]Abacotseems to be a misprint or misunderstanding for abicocket, a kind of horned head-dress. It corresponds to an Old Fr.bicoquetand Span.bicoquete, cap, the derivation of which is uncertain. Of somewhat later date isbrooch, "a painting all in one colour," which likewise occurs in all dictionaries of the 18th and 19th centuries. This is due to Miège (French Dict.1688) misunderstanding Cotgrave. There is a Fr.camaïeu, a derivative ofcameo, which has two meanings, viz., a cameobrooch, and a monochrome painting with a cameo effect. Miège appears to have taken the second meaning to be explanatory of the first, hence his entry—brooch, "camayeu, ouvrage de peinture qui n'est que d'une couleur." In Manwayring'sSeaman's Dictionary(1644), the old wordcarvel, applied to a special build of ship, is misprintedcarnell, and this we find persisting, not only in the compilations of such writers as Bailey, Ash, etc., but even in technical dictionaries of the 18th century "by officers who serv'd several years at sea and land." The Anglo-Saxon name for the kestrel (see p.100) wasstangella, stone-yeller (cf.nightingale), which appears later asstonegallandstaniel. In the 16th century we find the curious spellingsteingall,e.g., Cooper explainstinnunculusas "a kistrel, or a kastrell; asteyngall." In Cotgrave we find it printedfleingall, a form which recurs in several later dictionaries of the 17th century. Hence, somewhere between Cooper and Cotgrave, an ornithologist or lexicographer must have misprintedfleingallforſteingallby the common mistake offlforſt, and the ghost-word persists into the 18th century.

The difficulty of the etymologist's task is exemplified by the complete mystery which often enshrouds a wordof comparatively recent appearance. A well-known example is the wordHuguenot, for which fifteen different etymologies have been proposed. We first find it used in 1550, and by 1572 the French word-hunter Tabourot, generally known as des Accords, has quite a number of theories on the subject. He is worth quoting in full—

"De nostre temps ce mot deHuguenots, ouHucnotss'est ainsi intronisé: quelque chose qu'ayent escrit quelques-uns, que ce mot vientGnosticis hæreticis qui luminibus extinctis sacra faciebant, selon Crinit: ou bien du Roy Hugues Capet, ou de la porte de Hugon à Tours par laquelle ils sortoient pour aller à leur presche. Lors que les pretendus Reformez implorerent l'ayde des voix des Allemans, aussi bien que de leurs armees: les Protestans estans venus parler en leur faveur, devant Monsieur le Chancelier, en grande assemblee, le premier mot que profera celuy qui portoit le propos, fut,Huc nos venimus: Et apres estant pressé d'un reuthme (rhume, cold) il ne peut passer outre; tellement que le second dit le mesme,Huc nos venimus. Et les courtisans presents qui n'entendoient pas telle prolation; car selon la nostre ils prononcentHouc nos venimous, estimerent que ce fussent quelques gens ainsi nommez: et depuis surnommerent ceux de la Religion pretenduë reformee,Hucnos: en apres changeantCenG,Hugnots, et avec le temps on a allongé ce mot, et ditHuguenots. Et voylà la vraye source du mot, s'il n'y en a autre meilleure."[165]

The only serious etymology is Ger.Eidgenoss, oath companion, which agrees pretty well with the earliest recorded Swiss-French form,eiguenot, in Bonivard'sChronique de Genève.

UNSOLVED PROBLEMS

The engineering termculvertfirst appears about 1800, and there is not the slightest clue to its origin. The victorious march of the ugly wordswankhas been one of the linguistic phenomena of recent years. There is a dialect wordswank, to strut, which may be relatedto the common Scottish wordswankie, a strapping youth—

"I am told, youngswankie, that you are roaming the world to seek your fortune."(Monastery, Ch. 24.)

"I am told, youngswankie, that you are roaming the world to seek your fortune."

(Monastery, Ch. 24.)

But, in spite of the many conjectures, plausible or otherwise, which have been made, neither the etymology ofswanknor its sudden inroad into the modern language are at present explained. The wordogre, first used by Perrault in hisContes de Fées(1697), has occasioned much grave and learned speculation. Perhaps the philologists of the future may theorise as sapiently as to the origin ofjabberwockandbandersnatch.

FOOTNOTES:[142]The following "etymologies" occur, in the same list with a number which are quite correct, in a 16th-century French author, Tabourot des Accords:—Bonnet, debonetnet, pource que l'ornement de la teste doit estre tel.Chapeau, quasi,eschappe eau; aussi anciennement ne le souloit on porter que par les champs en temps de pluye.Chemise, quasi, surchair mise.Velours, quasi,velu ours.Galant, quasi,gay allant.Menestrier, quasi,meine estrierdes espousées.Orgueil, quasi,orde gueule.Noise, vient denois(noix), qui fontnoiseet bruit portées ensemble.Parlement, pource qu'on yparle et ment![143]Old Fr.pourloignier, to remove; cf.éloigner.[144]A very difficult word. Before it was applied to a Londoner it meant a milksop. It is thus used by Chaucer. Cooper rendersdelicias facere, "to play the wanton, to dally, to play thecockney." In this sense it corresponds to Fr.acoquiné, made into acoquin, "made tame, inward, familiar; also, growne as lazy, sloathful, idle, as a beggar" (Cotgrave).[145]Thought to be a Mexican word.[146]"Sache que le motgalant hommevient d'élégant; prenant leget l'ade la dernière syllabe, cela faitga, et puis prenantl, ajoutant unaet les deux dernières lettres, cela faitgalant, et puis ajoutanthomme, cela faitgalant homme." (Molière,Jalousie du Barbouillé, scène 2.)[147]Old Fr.joindre, Lat.junior.[148]Of Arabic origin.[149]That is, they are both descended from the same Indo-Germanic original. Voltaire was thus, superficially, right when he described etymology as a science in which the vowels do not count at all and the consonants very little.[150]Pulleyn's Etymological Compendium, 3rd ed., revised and improved by M. A. Thoms (Tegg & Co., 1853).[151]Cf.Fr.hurluberlu, which occurs in Rabelais, and in Rostand'sCyrano de Bergerac.[152]Tit-Bits, which honoured theRomance of Wordswith a notice (8th June 1912), approvingly quoted these three "etymologies" as being seriously propounded by the author. This is dramatic justice.[153]The following explanation, given in Miège'sFrench Dictionary(1688), is perhaps not far wrong: "C'est ainsi qu'on appelle par dérision lesYeomen of the Guarddans la cour d'Angleterre, qui sont des gardes à peu près comme les cent Suisses en France. Et on leur donne ce nom-là, parce qu' à la cour ils ne vivent que de bœuf: par opposition à ces collèges d'Angleterre, où les écoliers ne mangent que du mouton."[154]An acrostic of this kind would have no point if it resulted in a meaningless word. In the same way the Old Fr.Fauvel, whence ourcurry favour(see p.131), has a medieval explanation of the acrostic kind. It is supposed to be formed from the initial letters of the vicesFlatterie,Avarice,Vilenie,Variété,Envie,Lâcheté.[155]There is also a wordcadge, explained in the glossary to a book on falconry (1615) as a kind of frame on which an itinerant vendor of hawks carried his birds. But it is unrecorded in literature and labours under the suspicion of being a ghost-word. Its first occurrence, outside the dictionaries, is, I believe, in Mr Maurice Hewlett'sSong of Renny—"the nominal service of a pair of gerfalcons yearly, in golden hoods, upon a goldencadge" (Ch. 1).[156]This seems to have been realised by the author of theEtymological Compendium(see p.188,n.2), who tells us that the "termswallowis derived from the Frenchhirondelle, signifying indiscriminately voracious, literally a marshy place, that absorbs orswallowswhat comes within its vortex."[157]It is much more likely that it originated as a misunderstanding ofpervise, to survey, look through, earlier printedperuise. We have a similar misunderstanding in the nameAlured, forAlvred, i.e.Alfred. The influence of spelling upon sound is, especially in the case of words which are more often read than heard, greater than is generally realized. Most English people pronounce azin names likeDalziel,Mackenzie,Menzies, etc., whereas thiszis really a modern printer's substitution for an old symbol which had nearly the soundy(Dalyell, etc.).[158]And therefore identical with thefoiloftinfoil,counterfoil, etc.[159]It is a diminutive of some word which appears to be unrecorded (cf.Fr.pistoletfor the obsoletepistole). Charles Reade, whose archæology is very sound, makes Denys of Burgundy say, "Petronenor harquebuss shall ever put down Sir Arbalest" (Cloister and Hearth, Ch. 24); but I can find no other authority for the word.[160]Fusee, in this sense, occurs inRobinson Crusoe.[161]Over the tomb of the Black Prince in Canterbury Cathedral hangs his cumbrous tilting helmet. But the magnificent recumbent bronze effigy below represents him in his fighting kit, basnet on head.[162]Burgonet, Fr.bourguignotte, is supposed to meanBurgundianhelmet. The origin ofmorionis unknown, but its use by Scott inIvanhoe—"I have twice or thrice noticed the glance of amorrionfrom amongst the green leaves." (Ch. 40)—is an anachronism by four centuries. Both words are used vaguely as general names for helmet.[163]Seepay(p.160). It will be found that all verbs of this nature are formed from the name of the substance applied.[164]See letter by Dr Murray, afterwards Sir James Murray, in theAthenæum, Feb. 4, 1884.[165]TheEncyclopædia Britannicadoes not imitate the wise reticence of Tabourot's saving clause, but pronounces authoritatively for theporte de Hugonfable.

[142]The following "etymologies" occur, in the same list with a number which are quite correct, in a 16th-century French author, Tabourot des Accords:—Bonnet, debonetnet, pource que l'ornement de la teste doit estre tel.Chapeau, quasi,eschappe eau; aussi anciennement ne le souloit on porter que par les champs en temps de pluye.Chemise, quasi, surchair mise.Velours, quasi,velu ours.Galant, quasi,gay allant.Menestrier, quasi,meine estrierdes espousées.Orgueil, quasi,orde gueule.Noise, vient denois(noix), qui fontnoiseet bruit portées ensemble.Parlement, pource qu'on yparle et ment!

[142]The following "etymologies" occur, in the same list with a number which are quite correct, in a 16th-century French author, Tabourot des Accords:—

Bonnet, debonetnet, pource que l'ornement de la teste doit estre tel.Chapeau, quasi,eschappe eau; aussi anciennement ne le souloit on porter que par les champs en temps de pluye.Chemise, quasi, surchair mise.Velours, quasi,velu ours.Galant, quasi,gay allant.Menestrier, quasi,meine estrierdes espousées.Orgueil, quasi,orde gueule.Noise, vient denois(noix), qui fontnoiseet bruit portées ensemble.Parlement, pource qu'on yparle et ment!

[143]Old Fr.pourloignier, to remove; cf.éloigner.

[144]A very difficult word. Before it was applied to a Londoner it meant a milksop. It is thus used by Chaucer. Cooper rendersdelicias facere, "to play the wanton, to dally, to play thecockney." In this sense it corresponds to Fr.acoquiné, made into acoquin, "made tame, inward, familiar; also, growne as lazy, sloathful, idle, as a beggar" (Cotgrave).

[145]Thought to be a Mexican word.

[146]"Sache que le motgalant hommevient d'élégant; prenant leget l'ade la dernière syllabe, cela faitga, et puis prenantl, ajoutant unaet les deux dernières lettres, cela faitgalant, et puis ajoutanthomme, cela faitgalant homme." (Molière,Jalousie du Barbouillé, scène 2.)

[147]Old Fr.joindre, Lat.junior.

[148]Of Arabic origin.

[149]That is, they are both descended from the same Indo-Germanic original. Voltaire was thus, superficially, right when he described etymology as a science in which the vowels do not count at all and the consonants very little.

[150]Pulleyn's Etymological Compendium, 3rd ed., revised and improved by M. A. Thoms (Tegg & Co., 1853).

[151]Cf.Fr.hurluberlu, which occurs in Rabelais, and in Rostand'sCyrano de Bergerac.

[152]Tit-Bits, which honoured theRomance of Wordswith a notice (8th June 1912), approvingly quoted these three "etymologies" as being seriously propounded by the author. This is dramatic justice.

[153]The following explanation, given in Miège'sFrench Dictionary(1688), is perhaps not far wrong: "C'est ainsi qu'on appelle par dérision lesYeomen of the Guarddans la cour d'Angleterre, qui sont des gardes à peu près comme les cent Suisses en France. Et on leur donne ce nom-là, parce qu' à la cour ils ne vivent que de bœuf: par opposition à ces collèges d'Angleterre, où les écoliers ne mangent que du mouton."

[154]An acrostic of this kind would have no point if it resulted in a meaningless word. In the same way the Old Fr.Fauvel, whence ourcurry favour(see p.131), has a medieval explanation of the acrostic kind. It is supposed to be formed from the initial letters of the vicesFlatterie,Avarice,Vilenie,Variété,Envie,Lâcheté.

[155]There is also a wordcadge, explained in the glossary to a book on falconry (1615) as a kind of frame on which an itinerant vendor of hawks carried his birds. But it is unrecorded in literature and labours under the suspicion of being a ghost-word. Its first occurrence, outside the dictionaries, is, I believe, in Mr Maurice Hewlett'sSong of Renny—"the nominal service of a pair of gerfalcons yearly, in golden hoods, upon a goldencadge" (Ch. 1).

[156]This seems to have been realised by the author of theEtymological Compendium(see p.188,n.2), who tells us that the "termswallowis derived from the Frenchhirondelle, signifying indiscriminately voracious, literally a marshy place, that absorbs orswallowswhat comes within its vortex."

[157]It is much more likely that it originated as a misunderstanding ofpervise, to survey, look through, earlier printedperuise. We have a similar misunderstanding in the nameAlured, forAlvred, i.e.Alfred. The influence of spelling upon sound is, especially in the case of words which are more often read than heard, greater than is generally realized. Most English people pronounce azin names likeDalziel,Mackenzie,Menzies, etc., whereas thiszis really a modern printer's substitution for an old symbol which had nearly the soundy(Dalyell, etc.).

[158]And therefore identical with thefoiloftinfoil,counterfoil, etc.

[159]It is a diminutive of some word which appears to be unrecorded (cf.Fr.pistoletfor the obsoletepistole). Charles Reade, whose archæology is very sound, makes Denys of Burgundy say, "Petronenor harquebuss shall ever put down Sir Arbalest" (Cloister and Hearth, Ch. 24); but I can find no other authority for the word.

[160]Fusee, in this sense, occurs inRobinson Crusoe.

[161]Over the tomb of the Black Prince in Canterbury Cathedral hangs his cumbrous tilting helmet. But the magnificent recumbent bronze effigy below represents him in his fighting kit, basnet on head.

[162]Burgonet, Fr.bourguignotte, is supposed to meanBurgundianhelmet. The origin ofmorionis unknown, but its use by Scott inIvanhoe—"I have twice or thrice noticed the glance of amorrionfrom amongst the green leaves." (Ch. 40)—is an anachronism by four centuries. Both words are used vaguely as general names for helmet.

[163]Seepay(p.160). It will be found that all verbs of this nature are formed from the name of the substance applied.

[164]See letter by Dr Murray, afterwards Sir James Murray, in theAthenæum, Feb. 4, 1884.

[165]TheEncyclopædia Britannicadoes not imitate the wise reticence of Tabourot's saving clause, but pronounces authoritatively for theporte de Hugonfable.

Back to Index Next