Online Etymology Dictionary

July: seventh month, c. 1050, Iulius, from Anglo-French julie, Old French Juil, Jule (Modern French uses a diminutive, Juillet), from Latin Iulius "fifth month of the Roman calendar" (which began its year in March), renamed after his death and deification in honor of Gaius Julius Caesar, who was born in this month. In republican Rome it had been Quintilis, literally "fifth." Accented on the first syllable in English until 18c.; "the modern Eng. pronunciation is abnormal and unexplained" [OED]. Replaced Old English liða se æfterra "later mildness," from liðe "mild."
August: eighth month, 1097, from Latin Augustus (mensis), sixth month of the later Roman calendar, renamed from Sextilis (literally "sixth") in 8 B.C.E. to honor emperor Augustus Caesar, literally "Venerable Caesar" (see august (adj.)). In England, the name replaced native Weodmonað "weed month." One of two months given new names to honor Roman emperors (July being the other), the Romans also gave new imperial names to September (Germanicus) and October (Domitian) but luckily these did not stick.
fourth (adj.): mid-15c., alteration (by influence of four), of ferthe, from Old English feorða "fourth," from Proto-Germanic *fe(d)worthon- (source also of Old Saxon fiortho, Old Norse fiorðe, Dutch vierde, Old High German fiordo, German vierte); see four + -th (1). As a noun from 1590s, both of fractions and in music.

Among the old Quakers, who rejected the pagan weekday names, fourth day was Wednesday, often a secondary day of meeting for worship. Fourth-dimension attested from 1844. The theatrical fourth wall is from 1807. The celebration of the Fourth of July as the epoch of American independence is attested from 1777.
That there is due to Daniel Smith, of the city tavern, for his bill of expences of Congress, on the 4 of July last, including a balance of an old account, the sum of 729 68/90 dollars; also a bill for materials, workmanship, &c furnished for the fire works on the 4 July, the sum of 102 69/90 dollars .... [Auditor General's report, Aug. 8, 1777, "Journals of Congress," vol. VII]
Bastille (n.): 14c. Paris prison destroyed by revolutionaries on July 14, 1789, French, literally "fortress, tower" (see bastion).
hegira (n.): flight of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina (July 16, 622 C.E.), the event from which the Islamic calendar reckons, 1580s, from Medieval Latin hegira, from Arabic hijrah "departure," from hajara "to depart."
gizmo (n.): 1942, "Marine and Navy usage for any old thing you can't put a name to" ["Life" magazine, July 30, 1945], of unknown origin, perhaps a made-up word. Compare gadget, thingamajig.
flagstaff (n.): 1610s, from flag (n.) + staff (n.). The settlement in Arizona, U.S., said to have been so called for a July 4, 1876, celebration in which a large flag was flown from a tall tree.
Thammuz (n.): 1530s, from Hebrew tammuz, tenth month of the Jewish civil year, fourth of the sacred, covering parts of June and July; also the name of a Syrian deity equivalent to Phoenician Adon, whose festival began with the new moon of this month (compare Tammuz).
westernization (n.): also westernisation, 1873, noun of action from westernize (v.). Earliest reference is to Japan.
[The mikado's] late rapid and radical progress in westernization (to evolve a word that the Japanese will need) justifies great expectations of him. [Coates Kinney, "Japanning the English Language," "The Galaxy," July-Dec. 1873]
nudism (n.): 1929, from French nudisme (see nude + -ism). Nudist "one who practices nudism" appeared at the same time.
Made in Germany, imported to France, is the cult of Nudism, a mulligan stew of vegetarianism, physical culture and pagan worship. ["Time," July 1, 1929]
externalize (v.): 1846, from external + -ize. Related: Externalized; externalizing.
Self-government begins with a reverential recognition of a supreme law: its process is a constant endeavor to render that law objective, real, operative--to externalize it, if we may use the term. ["American Review," July, 1846]
legionnaire (n.): 1818, from French légionnaire, from légion (see legion). Legionnaires' Disease, caused by Legionella pneumophilia, was named after the lethal outbreak of July 1976 at the American Legion convention in Philadelphia's Bellevue Stratford Hotel. Hence also Legionella as the name of the bacterium.
ides (n.): "middle day of a Roman month," early 14c., from Old French ides (12c.), from Latin idus (plural) "the ides," a word perhaps of Etruscan origin. In the Roman calendar the eighth day after the nones, corresponding to the 15th of March, May, July, and October; the 13th of other months. "Debts and interest were often payable on the ides" [Lewis].
krypton (n.): inert gaseous element, 1898, coined by its discoverers (Sir William Ramsay and Morris W. Travers) from Greek krypton, neuter of adjective kryptos "hidden" (see crypt); so called because it remained undiscovered for so long and was so difficult to find. "Scientific American" (July 9, 1898) announced it as "the discovery of yet another element."
hecatomb (n.): 1590s, from Latinized form of Greek hekatombe, properly (and literally) "offering of 100 oxen," but generally "a great public sacrifice." It is a compound of hekaton "one hundred," which perhaps is dissimilated from *hem-katon, with hen, neuter of eis "one" + *katon "hundred." The second element is bous "ox" (see cow (n.)). The first month of the Attic calendar (corresponding to July-August) was Hekatombaion, in which sacrifices were made.
Charleston: dance style characterized by side-kicks from the knee, 1923 (as title of a song), 1925 as a dance, from the U.S. city of Charleston, South Carolina, which was named for King Charles II of England.
Whether the Charleston (dance) has come to stay or not, it behooves every open-minded hostess and musician to "try it out" anyhow. [Ethel P. Peyser, "The Rotarian," July 1926]
mortician (n.): 1895, American English, coined from mortuary + -ician, as in physician.
An undertaker will no longer be known as an "undertaker and embalmer." In the future he will be known as the "mortician." This was decided on at the second day's meeting of the Funeral Directors' Association of Kentucky, which was held in Louisville. ["The Medical Herald," July 1895]
trapeze (n.): swing with a cross-bar, used for feats of strength and agility, 1861, from French trapèze, from Late Latin trapezium (see trapezium), probably because the crossbar, the ropes and the ceiling formed a trapezium.
The French, to whose powers of invention (so long as you do not insist upon utility) there is no limit, have invented for the world the Trapeze .... ["Chambers's Journal," July 6, 1861]
Skee-Ball (n.): 1909, proprietary name (Skee-Ball Alley Company, Philadelphia, Pa., U.S.), the first element said to represent the old alternative spelling of ski (v.).
Skee ball bowling, in which the ball is jumped or skeed into the pockets in the same manner as a skee-jumper rises from the bump in his flight, is a new and unique hand-ball game that seems destined to great popularity. ["Popular Mechanics," July 1909]
sea-lion (n.): c. 1600, "kind of lobster," from sea + lion. Later the name of a fabulous animal (in heraldry, etc.), 1660s. Applied from 1690s to various species of large eared seals. As code name for the planned German invasion of Britain, it translates German Seelöwe, announced by Hitler July 1940, scrubbed October 1940.
bouncer (n.): mid-19c. in various senses, noun derivative of bounce (v.) in its original sense of "thump, hit." Earliest attested is "boaster, bully, braggart" (1833); also "large example of its kind" (1842); "enforcer of order in a bar or saloon" (1865, American English, originally colloquial).
"The Bouncer" is merely the English "chucker out". When liberty verges on license and gaiety on wanton delirium, the Bouncer selects the gayest of the gay, and -- bounces him! ["London Daily News," July 26, 1883]
emancipation (n.): 1630s, "a setting free," from French émancipation, from Latin emancipationem (nominative emancipatio), noun of action from past participle stem of emancipare (see emancipate). In modern use especially of the freeing of a minor from parental control. Specifically with reference to U.S. slavery from 1785 (the Emancipation Proclamation was issued July 22, 1862, effective Jan. 1, 1863). In Britain, with reference to easing of restrictions on Catholics, etc.
independence (n.): 1630s, "fact of not depending on others or another, self-support and self-government;" see independent + -ence. Earlier in same sense was independency (1610s). U.S. Independence Day (July 4, commemorating events of 1776) is recorded under that name by 1791.

An Old English word for it was selfdom, with self + dom "law," but in form this is closer to privilege (n.). The two concepts are not always distinguishable.
landscaping (n.): "art of laying out grounds and arranging plants and trees for picturesque effect," by 1861, verbal noun from landscape (v.). Earlier in the same sense was landscape-gardening (1763).
The question, however, is, Can landscape-gardening (or short and sweet, landscaping) be taught? It, plainly, cannot. ["The Gardener's Monthly" July 1861]
Also, in reference to the visual arts, "depiction as a landscape" (1868).
Gettysburg: town in south-central Pennsylvania, U.S., 1800 (earlier it was Gettys-town), founded 1780s by Gen. James Gettys and named for him. Civil War battle there was fought July 1-3, 1863. The Gettysburg Address was given Nov. 19, 1863, and was being called that by 1865, though before President Lincoln's assassination the term tended to refer to Edward Everett's full oration that preceded Lincoln's short speech.
gimme (v.): by 1828, representing the colloquial contraction of give me. To have the gimmes "be eagerly greedy" is from 1918; gimme cap attested by 1978. Middle English had yemme, gemme, contractions of yeve me (Middle English form of give me).
TOMMY -- Gimme a cake.
MAMMA -- If what? -- If you please .
TOMMY -- O, let up on that Pinafore business; gimme a cake!
["Puck," July 2, 1878]
Potsdam: town in Germany, first recorded 993 as Poztupimi; the name is Slavic, the first element is po "by near," the second element evidently was influenced by Dutch names in -dam. The Potsdam Conference of the victorious Allies in World War II was held July 17-Aug. 2, 1945, to decide the fate of Germany.
linkage (n.): "system of combined links," 1874, originally in mechanical engineering, from link (v.) + -age.
To understand the principle of Peaucellier's link-work, it is convenient to consider previously certain properties of a linkage, (to coin a new and useful word of general application), consisting of an arrangement of six links, obtained in the following manner ... (etc.). ["Recent Discoveries in Mechanical Conservation of Motion," in "Van Nostrand's Eclectic Engineering Magazine," vol. XI, July-December 1874]
deal (n.1): from Old English dæl "part, share, quantity, amount," from Proto-Germanic *dailaz (source also of Old Norse deild, Old Frisian del, Dutch deel, Old High German and German teil, Gothic dails "part, share"), from PIE *dail- "to divide" (source also of Old Church Slavonic delu "part," Lithuanian dalis).

Business sense of "transaction, bargain" is 1837, originally slang. Meaning "an amount" is from 1560s. New Deal is from F.D. Roosevelt speech of July 1932. Big deal is 1928; ironic use first recorded 1951 in "Catcher in the Rye." Deal breaker is attested by 1975.
manifest (adj.): late 14c., "clearly revealed," from Old French manifest "evident, palpable," (12c.), or directly from Latin manifestus "plainly apprehensible, clear, apparent, evident;" of offenses, "proved by direct evidence;" of offenders, "caught in the act," probably from manus "hand" (see manual) + -festus "struck" (compare second element of infest).
Other nations have tried to check ... the fulfillment of our manifest destiny to overspread the Continent allotted by Providence for the free development of our yearly multiplying millions. [John O'Sullivan (1813-1895), "U.S. Magazine & Democratic Review," July 1845]
The phrase apparently is O'Sullivan's coinage; the notion is as old as the republic.
nones (n.): early 15c., in reference to the Roman calendar, "ninth day (by inclusive reckoning) before the ides of each month" (7th of March, May, July, October, 5th of other months), from Latin nonæ (accusative nonas), fem. plural of nonus "ninth." Ecclesiastical sense of "daily office said originally at the ninth hour of the day" is from 1709; originally fixed at ninth hour from sunrise, hence about 3 p.m. (now usually somewhat earlier), from Latin nona (hora) "ninth (hour)," from fem. plural of nonus "ninth," contracted from *novenos, from novem "nine" (see nine). Also used in a sense of "midday" (see noon).
antonym (n.): 1867, coined to serve as opposite of synonym, from Greek anti- "equal to, instead of, opposite" (see anti-) + -onym "name" (see name (n.)). Perhaps introduced to English in the book "Synonyms and Antonyms" (1867) by the Ven. C.J. Smith, M.A.
UNDER the head of Synonyms and Antonyms, Archdeacon Smith arranges words which form an antithesis to one another. The word "antonym" is, we believe, a new formation but useful. ["Journal of Sacred Literature," July 1867]
French antonyme (1842), German antonym (by 1859) are older. The un-Greek alternative counterterm has been left to fade.
rickey (n.): alcoholic drink made with carbonated water and lime juice, 1895; reputedly from the name of "Colonel" Joseph K. Rickey (1842-1903), Democrat, of Callaway County, Missouri, U.S., lobbyist and wire-puller, who is said to have concocted it to entertain political friends.
And as long as there is thirst and limes, or lemons and gin, so long will the Honorable Joe Rickey be remembered in Missouri and his famous beverage tickle the palates of discriminating citizens. A hundred summers hence Joe Rickey will be called and Champ Clark and DeArmond forgotten. ["The Conservative," Nebraska City, Neb., July 6, 1899.]
ap- (2): patronymic prefix in Welsh names, earlier map "son," cognate with Gaelic mac. Since 17c. merged into surnames (Ap Rhys = Price, Ap Evan = Bevan, etc.).
It is said that a Welshman who evidently was not willing to be surpassed in length of pedigree, when making out his genealogical tree, wrote near the middle of his long array of 'aps' -- "about this time Adam was born." ["Origin and Significance of our Names," "The Chautauquan," Oct. 1887-July 1888]
scads (n.): "large amounts," 1869, American English, earlier "dollar" (1855, usually in plural), of uncertain origin. Unknown connection to scad, the fish, which were "often very abundant and occasionally seen in enormous shoals":
In July, 1834, as Mr. Yarrell informs us, most extraordinary shoals passed up the channel along the coast of Glamorganshire; their passage occupied a week, and they were evidently in pursuit of the fry of the herring. The water appeared one dark mass of fish, and they were caught by cart-loads, and might even be baled out of the water by the hands alone. ["British Fish and Fisheries," 1849]
LP: 1948, abbreviation of long-playing phonograph record.
The most revolutionary development to hit the recording industry since the invention of the automatic changer is the Long Playing record, which can hold an entire 45-minute symphony or musical-comedy score on a single 12-inch disk. ... The disks, released a few weeks ago by Columbia Records and made of Vinylite, have phenomenally narrow grooves (.003 of an inch). They are played at less than half the speed of the standard old-style records. ["Life" magazine, July 26, 1948]
black (n.): Old English blæc "the color black," also "ink," from noun use of black (adj.). From late 14c. as "dark spot in the pupil of the eye." The meaning "black person, African" is from 1620s (perhaps late 13c., and blackamoor is from 1540s). To be in the black (1922) is from the accounting practice of recording credits and balances in black ink.
For years it has been a common practice to use red ink instead of black in showing a loss or deficit on corporate books, but not until the heavy losses of 1921 did the contrast in colors come to have a widely understood meaning. ["Saturday Evening Post," July 22, 1922]
sweet-talk (v.): Sweet-talk, 1935, from noun phrase; see sweet (adj.) + talk (n.). Earliest usages seem to refer to conversation between black and white in segregated U.S.
"I ain' gonna stay heah no longah. Don' nevah keer, ef I do git cotched--or die. Tha's bettah than to stay heah an' listen to Maw Haney sweet-talk the white folks, whilst they drives us clean to the grave. ..." ["The Crisis," July 1935]
Latin had suaviloquens, literally "sweet-spoken."
James: masc. proper name, New Testament name of two of Christ's disciples, late 12c. Middle English vernacular form of Late Latin Jacomus (source of Old French James, Spanish Jaime, Italian Giacomo), altered from Latin Jacobus (see Jacob).

The Welsh form was Iago, the Cornish Jago. James the Greater (July 25) was son of Zebedee and brother of St. John; James the Less (May 1) is obscure and scarcely mentioned in Scripture; he is said to have been called that for being shorter or younger than the other. Fictional British spy James Bond dates from 1953, created by British author Ian Fleming (1908-1964), who plausibly is said to have taken the name from that of U.S. ornithologist James Bond (1900-1989), an expert on Caribbean birds.
pumpkin (n.): 1640s, alteration of pompone, pumpion "melon, pumpkin" (1540s), from Middle French pompon, from Latin peponem (nominative pepo) "melon," from Greek pepon "melon," probably originally "cooked (by the sun)," hence "ripe;" from peptein "to cook" (see cook (n.)). Pumpkin-pie is recorded from 1650s. Pumpkin-head, American English colloquial for "person with hair cut short all around" is recorded from 1781. Vulgar American English alternative spelling punkin attested by 1806.
America's a dandy place:
The people are all brothers:
And when one's got a punkin pye,
He shares it with the others.

[from "A Song for the Fourth of July, 1806," in "The Port Folio," Philadelphia, Aug. 30, 1806]
A.D.: 1570s, from Latin Anno Domini "Year of the Lord." Put forth by Dionysius Exiguus in 527 or 533 C.E., but used at first only for Church business. Introduced in Italy in 7c., France (partially) in 8c. In England, first found in a charter of 680 C.E. Ordained for all ecclesiastical documents in England by the Council of Chelsea, July 27, 816.

The resistance to it in part might have come because Dionysius chose 754 A.U.C. as the birth year of Jesus, while many early Christians would have thought it was 750 A.U.C. (See John J. Bond, "Handy-Book of Rules and Tables for Verifying Dates With the Christian Era," 4th ed., London: George Bell & Sons, 1889.) A.C., for Anno Christi, also was common 17c.
dismal (adj.): c. 1400, from Anglo-French dismal (mid-13c.), from Old French (li) dis mals "(the) bad days," from Medieval Latin dies mali "evil or unlucky days" (also called dies Ægyptiaci), from Latin dies "days" (see diurnal) + mali, plural of malus "bad" (see mal-).

Through the Middle Ages, calendars marked two days of each month as unlucky, supposedly based on the ancient calculations of Egyptian astrologers (Jan. 1, 25; Feb. 4, 26; March 1, 28; April 10, 20; May 3, 25; June 10, 16; July 13, 22; Aug. 1, 30; Sept. 3, 21; Oct. 3, 22; Nov. 5, 28; Dec. 7, 22). Modern sense of "gloomy, dreary" first recorded in English 1590s, in reference to sounds. Related: Dismally.
hillbilly (n.): "southern Appalachian person," by 1892, from hill (n.) + Billy/Billie, popular or pet form of William.
I would hate to see some old railroad man come here and take my job, and then, I don't think it is right to hire some Hill Billy and give him the same right as I just because he was hired the same time I was. ["The Railroad Trainmen's Journal," vol. IX, July 1892]

In short, a Hill-Billie is a free and untrammelled white citizen of Alabama, who lives in the hills, has no means to speak of, dresses as he can, talks as he pleases, drinks whiskey when he gets it, and fires of his revolver as the fancy takes him. ["New York Journal," April 23, 1900]
In reference to a type of U.S. folk music, first attested 1924.
dog days (n.): 1530s, from Latin dies caniculares, from Greek; so called because they occur around the time of the heliacal rising of Sirius, the Dog Star (kyon seirios). Noted as the hottest and most unwholesome time of the year; usually July 3 to Aug. 11, but variously calculated, depending on latitude and on whether the greater Dog-star (Sirius) or the lesser one (Procyon) is reckoned.

The heliacal rising of Sirius has shifted down the calendar with the precession of the equinoxes; in ancient Egypt c. 3000 B.C.E. it coincided with the summer solstice, which also was the new year and the beginning of the inundation of the Nile. The "dog" association apparently began here (the star's hieroglyph was a dog), but the reasons for it are obscure.
April: fourth month, c. 1300, aueril, from Old French avril (11c.), from Latin (mensis) Aprilis, second month of the ancient Roman calendar, of uncertain origin, perhaps based on Apru, an Etruscan borrowing of Greek Aphrodite. Or perhaps *ap(e)rilis "the following, the next," from its place as the second month of the old Roman calendar, from Proto-Italic *ap(e)ro-, from PIE *apo- "away, off" (see apo-; compare Sanskrit aparah "second," Gothic afar "after"). With month-name suffix -ilis as in Quintilis, Sextilis (the old names of July and August). In English in Latin form from mid-12c. Replaced Old English Eastermonað, which was named for a fertility goddess (see Easter). Re-spelled in Middle English on Latin model (apprile first attested late 14c.).
pray (v.): early 13c., "ask earnestly, beg," also (c. 1300) "pray to a god or saint," from Old French preier "to pray" (c.900, Modern French prier), from Vulgar Latin *precare (also source of Italian pregare), from Latin precari "ask earnestly, beg, entreat," from *prex (plural preces, genitive precis) "prayer, request, entreaty," from PIE root *prek- "to ask, request, entreat" (source also of Sanskrit prasna-, Avestan frashna- "question;" Old Church Slavonic prositi, Lithuanian prasyti "to ask, beg;" Old High German frahen, German fragen, Old English fricgan "to ask" a question).

Parenthetical expression I pray you, "please, if you will," attested from 1510s, contracted to pray 16c. Related: Prayed; praying. Praying mantis attested from 1809. The "Gardener's Monthly" of July 1861 lists other names for it as camel cricket, soothsayer, and rear horse.
terrorism (n.): 1795, in specific sense of "government intimidation during the Reign of Terror in France" (March 1793-July 1794), from French terrorisme, from Latin terror (see terror).
If the basis of a popular government in peacetime is virtue, its basis in a time of revolution is virtue and terror -- virtue, without which terror would be barbaric; and terror, without which virtue would be impotent. [Robespierre, speech in French National Convention, 1794]
General sense of "systematic use of terror as a policy" is first recorded in English 1798 (in reference to the Irish Rebellion of that year). At one time, a word for a certain kind of mass-destruction terrorism was dynamitism (1883); and during World War I frightfulness (translating German Schrecklichkeit) was used in Britain for "deliberate policy of terrorizing enemy non-combatants."
copperhead (n.): Trigonocephalus contortrix, 1775, American English, so called for color markings between its eyes; see copper + head (n.). Poisonous "sneak snakes" (because they bite without warning), the name is said to have been first used in reference to Northerners suspected of Southern sympathies in Greeley's New York "Tribune," July 20, 1861. Charles H. Coleman, "The Use of the Term 'Copperhead' During the Civil War" ["Mississippi Valley Historical Review" 25 (1938), p.263] traces it to an anonymous letter against Ohio anti-war Democrats in the Cincinnati "Commercial" newspaper in the summer of 1861. It seems not to have been in widespread use until summer 1862.
varus (n.): foot deformity in which the feet are extroverted, so that the inner ankle rests on the ground, while the sole of the foot is more or less turned outwards, 1800, from Latin varus "bent, bent outwards, turned awry, crooked," specifically "with legs bent inward, knock-kneed," of uncertain origin.
If the original meaning was 'with the legs opened', varus might be compared with vanus and vastus, and reflect *wa-ro- 'going apart, letting go'. In any case, none of the other etymologies proposed seems plausible. [de Vaan]
The use of classical varus and valgus, which denoted deformities of the legs, in modern medicine to describe deformities of the feet, was criticized by learned writers (see "Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal," July 1838).
exploitation (n.): 1803, "productive working" of something, a positive word among those who used it first, though regarded as a Gallicism, from French exploitation, noun of action from exploiter (see exploit (v.)). Bad sense developed 1830s-50s, in part from influence of French socialist writings (especially Saint Simon), also perhaps influenced by use of the word in U.S. anti-slavery writing; and exploitation was hurled in insult at activities it once had crowned as praise.
It follows from this science [conceived by Saint Simon] that the tendency of the human race is from a state of antagonism to that of an universal peaceful association -- from the dominating influence of the military spirit to that of the industriel one; from what they call l'exploitation de l'homme par l'homme to the exploitation of the globe by industry. ["Quarterly Review," April & July 1831]