Oxford University Press's
Academic Insights for the Thinking World
by Anatoly Liberman HOOSIER. Almost exactly two years ago, on July 30, 2008, I posted an essay on the origin of the nickname Hoosier. In it I expressed my cautious support of R. Hooser, who derived the “moniker” for an inhabitant of Indiana from a family name. I was cautious not because I found fault […]
Two circumstances have induced me to turn to bamboozle. First, I am constantly asked about its origin and have to confess my ignorance (with the disclaimer: “No one knows where it came from”; my acquaintances seldom understand this statement, for I have a reputation to live up to and am expected to provide final answers about the derivation of all words). Second, the Internet recycles the same meager information at our disposal again and again (I am not the only recipient of the fateful question). Since the etymology of bamboozle is guesswork from beginning to end, it matters little how often the uninspiring truth is repeated. Below I will say what little I can about the verb.
The young Dickens was the first to record the word kibosh. We don’t know for sure how it sounded in the 1830’s, but, judging by the spelling ky(e)-, it must always have been pronounced with long i. The main 19th-century English etymologists (Eduard Mueller, Hensleigh Wedgwood, and Walter W. Skeat) did not include kibosh in their dictionaries. They probably had nothing to say about it, though Mueller, a German, hardly ever saw such a rare and insignificant word.
Slang words are so hard to etymologize because they are usually isolated, while language historians prefer to work with sound correspondences, cognates, and protoforms. Most modern “thick” dictionaries tell us that rogue, the subject of this post, is of unknown origin. This conclusion could be expected, for rogue, a 16th-century creation, meant “a wandering mendicant.” (Skeat attributes the original sense “a surly fellow” to it but does not adduce sufficient evidence in support of his statement.)
Anatoly Liberman looks at the words “dodge” and “kitsch”.
Anatoly Liberman looks at the word “humbug”.
For the third part of his Unpleasant People series, Anatoly Liberman discusses the recent origins of the word swindler.
In this post, the second part in his Unpleasant People series, Anatoly Liberman considers the word “Scoundrel.”
Anatoly Liberman discusses the word “culprit” as the first part of his Unpleasant People series.
Anatoly Liberman ponders what he learned this month, “especially” the “buzzword” “neologist.”
Anatoly Liberman discusses the origins of the word “squeamish.”
Anatoly Liberman examines the origins and meanings of the word “pun.”
Anatoly Liberman looks at the word “trash”.
Anatoly Liberman’s weekly post.
Anatoly Liberman discusses the etymology of the word “rare.”
Anatoly Liberman discusses the etymology of Whitsunday.