Online Etymology Dictionary

Knickerbocker: "descendant of Dutch settlers of New York," 1831, from Diedrich Knickerbocker, the name under which Washington Irving published his popular "History of New York" (1809). The pen-name was borrowed from Irving's friend Herman Knickerbocker, and literally means "toy marble-baker," from German knicker, schoolboy slang for "marble," apparently an agent-noun from the imitative verb knikken "to snap."
ecu (n.): old French silver coin, 1704, from French écu, "a shield," also the name of a coin, from Old French escu (12c.) "shield, coat of arms," also the name of a coin with three fleur-de-lys stamped on it as on the shield, formerly escut, from Latin scutum "shield" (see hide (n.1)). First issued by Louis IX (1226-1270); so called because the shield of France was imprinted on them.
Jessica: fem. proper name, from Late Latin Jesca, from Greek Ieskha, from Hebrew Yiskah, name of a daughter of Haran (Gen. xi:29). Among the top 5 popular names for girls born in the U.S. every year between 1977 and 1997. The familiar form Jessie was one of many fem. names used 20c. for "cowardly or effeminate male" (1923).
laser (n.): 1960, acronym for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation," on pattern of maser (1955). A corresponding verb, lase, was coined by 1962. Related: Lasered; lasering. Laser disc recorded from 1980. Earlier laser was the name of a type of gum-resin from North Africa used medicinally (1570s), from Latin; still earlier it was an Old English and Middle English name for some weed, probably cockle.
madras (adj.): 1833, in reference to the former Indian state of Madras (modern Chennai, a Tamil name), from which this type of bright-colored muslin cloth was exported. The British fort there dates from 1639; the name sometimes is said to be from Sanskrit mandra, a god of the underworld, but perhaps rather from Arabic madrasa "school" or Portuguese Madre (de Deus).
maelstrom (n.): 1680s (Hakluyt, 1560s, has Malestrand), name of a famous whirlpool off the northwest coast of Norway, from Danish malstrøm (1673), from older Dutch Maelstrom (modern maalstroom), literally "grinding-stream," from malen "to grind" (see meal) + stroom "stream" (see stream (n.)). The name was used by Dutch cartographers (for example Mercator, 1595). OED says perhaps originally from Færoic mal(u)streymur. Popularized as a synonym for "whirlpool" c. 1841, the year of Poe's "A Descent into the Maelstrom."
Magnus: Scandinavian masc. proper name, popular with early kings, the first to use it was Magnus I, king of Norway and Denmark (d.1047), who evidently took it in emulation of Charlemagne (Latin Carolus Magnus) under the impression that magnus (Latin, literally "great;" see magnate) was a personal name.
Lambert: masc. proper name, from French, from German Lambert, from Old High German Lambreht, from lant "land" (see land (N.)) + beraht "bright" (see bright (adj.)). Old English cognate was Landbeorht. The English popularity of the name 12c. and after probably is due to immigration from Flanders, where St. Lambert of Maestricht was highly venerated. Attested as a surname from mid-12c.
Lancaster: 1086, Loncastre, literally "Roman Fort on the River Lune," a Celtic river name probably meaning "healthy, pure." In English history, the Lancastrians or House of Lancaster in the War of the Roses were the branch of the Plantagenets descended from John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster. Lancastrian (1650s) is the usual adjective with places of that name; Lancasterian (1807) was used of the teaching methods popularized early 19c. by educator Joseph Lancaster (1778-1838).
Lapland: northernmost part of the Scandinavian peninsula, 1570s, from Lapp, the Swedish name for this Finnic people (their name for themselves was Sabme), which probably originally was an insulting coinage (compare Middle High German lappe "simpleton"). "Formerly, the fabled home of witches and magicians, who had power to send winds and tempests" [OED]. Related: Laplander.
Naugahyde: trademark name patented (U.S.) Dec. 7, 1937, by United States Rubber Products Inc., for an artificial leather made from fabric base treated with rubber, etc. From Naugatuk, rubber-making town in Connecticut, + hyde, an arbitrary variant of hide (n.). The town name is Southern New England Algonquian *neguttuck "one tree," from *negut- "one" + *-tugk "tree."
Oceania: "southern Pacific island and Australia, conceived as a continent," 1849, Modern Latin, from French Océanie (c. 1812). Apparently coined by Danish geographer Conrad Malte-Brun (1755-1826). Earlier in English as Oceanica (1832). Oceania was the name of one of the superstates in Orwell's "Nineteen Eighty-Four." Oceanea, name of James Harrington's 17c. ideal state, later was applied to the British empire.
valance (n.): piece of hanging, decorative drapery, mid-15c., of uncertain origin, probably from Anglo-French *valaunce, valence, from valer "go down, let down," variant of Old French avaler "descend, go down;" or possibly from the plural of Old French avalant, from present participle of avaler "go down." The notion is of something "hanging down." Not now considered to be from the name of Valence in southwestern France, which is from the Roman personal name Valentius. Related: Valenced.
valerian (n.): plant of Eurasia, cultivated for its medicinal root, late 14c., from Old French valeriane "wild valerian" (13c.), apparently from feminine singular of Latin adjective Valerianus, from the personal name Valerius (see Valerie); but Weekley writes, "some of the German and Scand. forms of the name point rather to connection with the saga-hero Wieland."
Tartuffe (n.): "pretender to piety," 1670s, from name of the principal character in the comedy by Molière (1664), apparently from Old French tartuffe "truffle" (see truffle), perhaps chosen for suggestion of concealment (Tartuffe is a religious hypocrite), or "in allusion to the fancy that truffles were a diseased product of the earth." Italian Tartufo is said to have been the name of a hypocritical character in Italian comedy.
panda (n.): 1835, from French, apparently from the Nepalese name of a raccoon-like mammal (lesser panda) found there. First reference to the Giant Panda is from 1901; since its discovery in 1869 by French missionary Armand David (1826-1900) it had been known as parti-colored bear, but the name was changed after the zoological relationship to the red panda was established.
Rasputin: acquired name (Russian, literally "debauchee") of Grigory Yefimovich Novykh (c. 1872-1916), mystic and faith healer who held sway over court of Nicholas II of Russia. His nickname is from his doctrine of "rebirth through sin," that true holy communion must be preceded by immersion in sin. His name used figuratively in English from 1937 for anyone felt to have an insidious and corrupting influence.
rayon (n.): 1924, chosen by National Retail Dry Goods Association of America, probably from French rayon "beam of light, ray," from rai (see ray (n.1)), which also was used in Middle English as a name for a type of cloth. So called because it is shiny. A more marketable alternative than the original patented name, artificial silk (1884), or the intervening attempt, Glos, which was "killed by ridicule" ["Draper's Record," June 14, 1924].
Tabasco: proprietary name of a type of hot sauce, 1876, (the sauce so called from 1650s, originally Tavasco), named for the state in Mexico, perhaps because the pepper sauce was first encountered there by U.S. and European travelers. The trademark (by Edward Avery McIlhenny) claims use from c. 1870. The place name is from an unidentified Mexican Indian language and of unknown etymology.
Rambo: used allusively from 1985, in reference to John Rambo, hero of David Morrell's novel "First Blood" (1972), popularized as portrayed by Sylvester Stallone in Hollywood movie version (1982), a U.S. Vietnam veteran, "macho and self-sufficient, and bent on violent retribution" [OED]. The family name is an old one in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, originally Swedish, sometimes said to represent Swedish place name Ramberget, or to be from French Huguenots who took refuge in Sweden.
pythoness (n.): late 14c., "woman with the power of soothsaying," from Old French phitonise (13c.), from Late Latin pythonissa, used in Vulgate of the Witch of Endor (I Sam. xxviii:7), and often treated as her proper name, literally fem. of pytho "familiar spirit;" which ultimately is connected with the title of the prophetess of the Delphic Oracle, Greek pythia hiereia, from Pythios, an epithet of Apollo, from Pytho, older name of the region of Delphi (see python).
pack-rat (n.): common name for the North American bushytailed woodrat (Neotoma cinerea) 1885, from pack (v.); so called from the rodents' habit of dragging objects off to their holes. Used figuratively or allusively from c. 1850 of persons who won't discard anything, which means either the rat's name is older than the record or the human sense is the original one.
geyser (n.): 1780, extended from Icelandic Geysir, name of a specific hot spring in the valley of Haukadal, literally "the gusher," from Old Norse geysa "to gush," from Proto-Germanic *gausjan, suffixed form of PIE *gheus-, extended form of the root *gheu- "to pour" (see found (v.2)). Taken by foreign writers as the generic name for spouting hot springs, for which the native Icelandic words are hverr "a cauldron," laug "a hot bath."
Gideon: masc. proper name, name of an Israelite judge and warrior [Judges vi:11-viii:25], from Hebrew Gidh'on, literally "feller," from stem of gadha "he cut off, hewed, felled." In reference to the Bible propagation society, 1906, formally Christian Commercial Young Men's Association of America, founded 1899. The hotel room Gideon Bible so called by 1922.
Joseph: masc. proper name, biblical son of Jacob and Rachel, and in the New Testament the name of the husband of Mary, mother of Jesus; from Late Latin Joseph, Josephus, from Greek Ioseph, from Hebrew Yoseph (also Yehoseph; see Ps. lxxxi:6) "adds, increases," causative of yasaph "he added." Its use in names of clothing and plants often is in reference to his "coat of many colors" (Gen. xxxvii:3).
Jurassic (adj.): "of or pertaining to the geological period between the Triassic and the Cretaceous," 1823, from French Jurassique, literally "of the Jura Mountains," between France and Switzerland, whose limestones were laid down during this geological period. The name was chosen by von Humboldt. As a noun from 1831. The name is said to be from Gaulish *iuris "wooded mountain."
hawkshaw (n.): "detective," 1866, U.S. slang, from name of the detective in "The Ticket-of-Leave Man," 1863 play by English dramatist Tom Taylor (1817-1880); it later was used in the comic strip "Hawkshaw the Detective" (1913-1947) by U.S. cartoonist Gus Mager (1878-1956). The surname is attested from late 13c., from a place name in Lancashire, with shaw "undergrowth, woodland, scrub," from Old English sceaga.
Indo-China: also Indochina, "Further India, the region between India and China," 1815, from Indo- "India" + China. The name was said to have been proposed by Scottish poet and orientalist John Leyden, who lived and worked in India from 1803 till his death at 35 in 1811. French Indo-Chine is attested from 1813, but the source credits it to Leyden. The inappropriateness of the name was noticed from the start. Related: Indo-Chinese (1814).
Job: Biblical masc. proper name, name of an ancient patriarch whose story forms a book of the Old Testament, from Hebrew Iyyobh, which according to some scholars is literally "hated, persecuted," from ayyabh "he was hostile to," related to ebhah "enmity." Others say it means "the penitent one." Figurative of bad news, destitution, and patient endurance. Hence Job's comforter, of one who brings news of additional misfortune (1736).
Electra: also called Laodice, a daughter of Agamemnon and Clytaemnestra, the accomplice of her brother Orestes in the murder of their mother, from Greek Elektra, literally "shining, bright," related to elektor "the beaming sun" and perhaps to elektron "amber." Especially in psychological Electra complex (1913, Jung) in reference to a daughter who feels attraction toward her father and hostility to her mother. Also the name of a daughter of Atlas, and as such a name of one of the Pleiades.
Elgin Marbles (n.): 1809, sculptures and marbles (especially from the frieze of the Parthenon) brought from Greece to England and sold to the British government by Thomas Bruce, 7th Earl of Elgin (1766-1841). The place is in Scotland, literally "little Ireland," from Ealg, an early Gaelic name for Ireland, with diminutive suffix -in. "The name would have denoted a colony of Scots who had emigrated here from Ireland ..." [Room].
Bartholomew: masc. proper name, from Old French Barthelemieu, from Latin Bartholomæus, from Greek Bartholomaios, from Aramaic bar Talmay, literally "son of Talmai," from the proper name Talmai, "abounding in furrows." One of the 12 Apostles, his festival is Aug. 24. On this date in 1572 took place the massacre of Protestants in France. Bartholomew Fair was held annually from 1133 to 1855 at West Smithfield.
yenta (n.): "gossip, busybody," 1923, from Yente Telebende, comic strip gossip in 1920s-30s writing of Yiddish newspaper humorist B. Kovner (pen-name of Jacob Adler) in the "Jewish Daily Forward." It was a common Yiddish fem. proper name, altered from Yentl and said to be ultimately from Italian gentile "kind, gentle," earlier "noble, high-born" (see gentle).
York: city in northern England, Old English Eoforwic, earlier Eborakon (c. 150), an ancient Celtic name, probably meaning "Yew-Tree Estate," but Eburos may also be a personal name. Related: Yorkist; Yorkish; Yorker. Yorkshire pudding is recorded from 1747; Yorkshire terrier first attested 1872; short form Yorkie is from 1950.
acrylic (adj.): 1855, "of or containing acryl," name of a radical from acrolein (1843), the name of a liquid in onions and garlic that makes eyes tear, from Latin acer "sharp" (see acrid) + olere "to smell" (see odor) + -in (see -ine (2)). With adjectival suffix + -ic. Modern senses often short for acrylic fiber, acrylic resin, etc.
Adam: masc. proper name, Biblical name of the first man, progenitor of the human race, from Hebrew adam "man," literally "(the one formed from the) ground" (Hebrew adamah "ground"); compare Latin homo "man," humanus "human," humus "earth, ground, soil." To not know (someone) from Adam "not know him at all" is first recorded 1784.
derby (n.): type of hat," manufactured in U.S. 1850, name appears 1870, perhaps from annual Derby horse race in England, where this type of hat was worn. Race was begun 1780 by the 12th Earl of Derby; the name was used for any major horse race after 1875. Derby the English shire is Old English Deorby "deer village," from deor "deer" + by "habitation, homestead," from a Scandinavian source (see bylaw).
Teflon (n.): commercially important synthetic polymer, 1945, proprietary name registered in U.S. by du Pont, from chemical name (poly)te(tra)fl(uoroethylene) + arbitrary ending -on; popularized as a coating of non-stick pans in 1960s; metaphoric extension, especially in reference to U.S. President Ronald Reagan, is attested from an Aug. 2, 1983, speech on the floor of Congress by Pat Schroeder.
Ordovician (adj.): geological period following the Cambrian and preceding the Silurian, 1879, coined by English geologist Charles Lapworth (1842-1920) from Latin Ordovices, name of an ancient British tribe in North Wales. The period so called because rocks from it first were studied extensively in the region around Bala in North Wales. The tribe's name is Celtic, literally "those who fight with hammers," from Celtic base *ordo "hammer" + PIE *wik- "to fight, conquer" (see victor).
niacin (n.): "pellagra-preventing vitamin in enriched bread," 1942, coined from ni(cotinic) ac(id) + -in (2), chemical suffix; suggested by the American Medical Association as a more commercially viable name than nicotinic acid.
The new name was found to be necessary because some anti-tobacco groups warned against enriched bread because it would foster the cigarette habit. ["Cooperative Consumer," Feb. 28, 1942]
nicotine (n.): poisonous alkaloid found in tobacco leaves, 1819, from French nicotine, earlier nicotiane, from Modern Latin Nicotiana, formal botanical name for the tobacco plant, named for Jean Nicot (c. 1530-1600), French ambassador to Portugal, who sent tobacco seeds and powdered leaves back to France 1561. His name is a diminutive of Nicolas.
Orion: bright constellation, late 14c., from Greek Oarion, name of a giant in Greek mythology, loved by Aurora, slain by Artemis, of unknown origin, though some speculate on Akkadian Uru-anna "the Light of Heaven." Another Greek name for the constellation was Kandaon, a title of Ares, god of war, and the star pattern is represented in many cultures as a giant (such as Old Irish Caomai "the Armed King," Old Norse Orwandil, Old Saxon Ebuðrung).
Paris: capital of France, from Gallo-Latin Lutetia Parisorum (in Late Latin also Parisii), name of a fortified town of the Gaulish tribe of the Parisii, who had a capital there; literally "Parisian swamps" (compare Old Irish loth "dirt," Welsh lludedic "muddy, slimy").

The tribal name is of unknown origin, but traditionally derived from a Celtic par "boat" (perhaps related to Greek baris; see barge (n.)), hence the ship on the city's coat of arms.
celadon (n.): "pale grayish-green," 1768, from French Céladon, name of a character in the romance of "l'Astrée" by Honoré d'Urfé (1610); an insipidly sentimental lover who wore bright green clothes, he is named in turn after Greek Keladon, a character in Ovid's "Metamorphoses," whose name is said to mean "sounding with din or clamor." The mineral celadonite (1868) is so called for its color.
Visigoth: 1640s, from Late Latin Visigothus (plural Visigothi), perhaps "West Goths" (which could be Latinized from a Germanic source such as Old High German westan "from the west"), as opposed to Ostrogothi; but according to some authorities, Visi/Vesi appears to be a Latinized form of a tribal name. Their kingdom endured to 507 in southern France, till 711 in Spain. In common with Vandal their name later was used for "uncivilized person" (1749). Related: Visigothic.
William: masc. proper name, from Old North French Willaume, Norman form of French Guillaume, of Germanic origin (cognates: Old High German Willahelm, German Wilhelm), from willio "will" (see will (n.)) + helma "helmet," from Proto-Germanic *helmaz "protective covering" (see helm (n.2)). After the Conquest, the most popular given name in England until supplanted by John.
agave (n.): American aloe plant, 1797, from Latin Agave, from Greek Agaue, proper name in mythology (mother of Pentheus), from agauos "noble," perhaps from agasthai "wonder at," from gaiein "to rejoice, exult," with intensive prefix a-. The name seems to have been taken generically by botanists, the plant perhaps so called for its "stately" flower stem.
Albania: Medieval Latin name of the country called by its inhabitants Shqipëri (literally "land of eagles," from shqiponje "eagle"), from Medieval Greek Albania, possibly from a pre-IE word *alb "hill" (also proposed as the source of Alps) or from the PIE root *albho- "white" (see alb). Roman Albania was a land by the Caspian Sea (modern Daghestan); in English Albania was occasionally also a name for Scotland.
Aldine (n.): type font, 1837, from Aldus Manutius (1450-1515), Venetian printer who used it in his popular editions of Greek and Roman classics. His name is a Latinized form of Italian Aldo Manuzio, the first name short for Teobaldo (see Theobald), and, like so many Italian masc. given names, of Germanic origin. The device characteristic of Aldine books is a figure of a dolphin on an anchor.
alectryomancy (n.): "divination by means of a cock and grains of corn," 1680s, from Latinized form of Greek alektryon "cock" + manteia "oracle" (see -mancy). The first element is literally "warder-off, fighter," related to alexein "to ward off, drive or keep off" (see Alexander, and compare Alekto, name of one of the three Furies). Perhaps originally a personal name, applied at first to the fighting cock, then to cocks generally.