Online Etymology Dictionary

filament (n.): "fine untwisted thread, separate fibril," 1590s, from Modern Latin filamentum, from Late Latin filare "to spin, draw out in a long line," from Latin filum "thread" (see file (v.1)). As the name of the incandescent element in a light-bulb, from 1881.
firm (n.): "business house," 1744, according to Barnhart from German Firma "a business, name of a business," originally "signature," from Italian firma "signature," from firmare "to sign," from Latin firmare "make firm, affirm," in Late Latin, "confirm (by signature)," from firmus "strong; stable," figuratively "constant, trusty" (see firm (adj.)).
Jonah: masc. proper name, biblical prophet and subject of the Book of Jonah, from Hebrew Yonah, literally "dove, pigeon." In nautical use (and extended) "person on shipboard regarded as the cause of bad luck" (Jonah 1:v-xvi).
Havana: Cuban capital city, founded 1514 by Diego Velázquez as San Cristóbal de la Habana "St. Christopher of the Habana," apparently the name of a local native people. The Spanish adjective form is Habanero. Meaning "cigar made in Havana" is by 1826.
Hayward: proper name, from Old English hege-weard "guardian of the fence/hedge" (see hedge (n.) + ward (n.)). His original duties seem to have been protecting the fences around the Lammas lands, when enclosed, to prevent cattle from breaking in while the crops grew.
delta (n.): c. 1200, Greek letter shaped like a triangle, equivalent to our "D," the name from Phoenician daleth "tent door." Herodotus used it of the mouth of the Nile, and it was so used in English from 1550s; applied to other river mouths from 1790.
Demeter: goddess of agriculture, mother of Persephone, from Greek Demeter; the second element generally given as mater (see mother); the first element possibly from da, Doric form of Greek ge "earth" (see Gaia), but Liddell & Scott find this "improbable." The Latin masc. proper name Demetrius means "son of Demeter."
denim (n.): 1690s, from French serge de Nîmes "serge from Nîmes," town in southern France. Application to "coarse cotton cloth" is first recorded 1850 in American English. Denims "pants made of denim" recorded from 1868. The place name is Roman Nemausus, said to be ultimately from Gaulish nemo "sanctuary."
jute (n.): name of a plant fiber used in making coarse fabrics and paper, and the plant which produces it, 1746, from Bengali jhuto, ultimately from Sanskrit juta-s "twisted hair, matted hair," related to jata "braid of hair," a word of unknown origin, perhaps from a non-Indo-European language.
Jute: Old English Eotas, Iutas (plural), one of the ancient Germanic inhabitants of Jutland, the peninsula between modern Germany and Denmark, who, with the Angles and Saxons invaded Britain in 5c.. Traditionally they were said to have settled in Kent and Hampshire. The name is related to Old Norse Iotar. Related: Jutish (1775).
lawn (n.2): "thin linen or cotton cloth," early 15c., probably from Laon, city in northern France, a center of linen manufacture. The town name is Old French Lan, from Latin Laudunum, of Celtic origin. For form evolution, compare fawn (n.) from faon. Lawn sleeves (1630s) were emblematic of Anglican bishops.
infirmary (n.): mid-15c., "sick bay in a monastery," formerly also enfermerie, also firmary, fermery, from Old French enfermerie "hospital" and directly from Medieval Latin infirmaria "a place for the infirm," from Latin infirmus "weak, frail," (see infirm). According to OED, the common name for a public hospital in 18c. England.
jockey (n.): "person who rides horses in races," 1660s, a specific use of the earlier sense "boy, fellow" (1520s), which is a special use of the Scottish proper name Jockey, a familiar or diminutive form of Jock. Jockey-boots are from 1680s; jockey-shorts "abbreviated underwear for men" is from 1935 (jockey-briefs from 1946).
incisor (n.): "cutting tooth," 1670s, from Medieval Latin incisor "a cutting tooth," literally "that which cuts into," from Latin incisus, past participle of incidere "to cut into" (see incision). Inscisours as the name of a cutting tool is attested from early 15c. Related: Incisorial.
Gitano (n.): "gypsy," 1834, from Spanish Gitano (fem. Gitana), from Vulgar Latin *Ægyptanus "Egyptian" (see Gypsy). The fem. is gitana. The French form of the feminine, gitane, was used as the name of a brand of cigarettes (1933) and has come to be used for French cigarettes generally.
Glastonbury: town in Somersetshire, famous as a prehistoric site, Old English Glestingabyrig, Glastingburi (725), "Stronghold (Old English byrig, dative of burh) of the people (Old English -inga-) living at Glaston," a Celtic name, possibly meaning "woad place."
Harry: masc. proper name, a familiar form of Henry. Weekley takes the overwhelming number of Harris and Harrison surnames as evidence that "Harry," not "Henry," was the Middle English pronunciation of Henry. Compare Harriet, English equivalent of French Henriette, fem. diminutive of Henri.
Mammon (n.): "personification of wealth," mid-14c., from Late Latin mammona, from Greek mamonas, from Aramaic mamona, mamon "riches, gain;" left untranslated in Greek New Testament (e.g. Matt. vi:24, Luke xvi:9-13) retained in the Vulgate, and regarded mistakenly by medieval Christians as the name of a demon.
Waterloo (n.): village near Brussels; the great battle there took place June 18, 1815; extended sense of "a final, crushing defeat" is first attested 1816 in letter of Lord Byron. The second element in the place name is from Flemish loo "sacred wood" (see lea (n.)).
yahoo (n.): "a brute in human form," 1726, from the race of brutish human creatures in Swift's "Gulliver's Travels." "A made name, prob. meant to suggest disgust" [Century Dictionary]. "Freq. in mod. use, a person lacking cultivation or sensibility, a philistine; a lout; a hooligan" [OED]. The internet search engine so called from 1994.
electrolysis (n.): 1834; the name was introduced by Faraday on the suggestion of the Rev. William Whewell (1794-1866), English polymath, from electro- + Greek lysis "a loosening," from lyein "to loosen, set free" (see lose). Originally of tumors, later (1879) of hair removal. Related: electrolytic.
bathyscaphe (n.): "diving apparatus for reaching great depths," 1947, name coined by its inventor, Swiss "scientific extremist" Prof. Auguste Piccard (1884-1962), from Greek bathys "deep" (see benthos) + skaphe "light boat, skiff" (see skaphoid).
bazooka (n.): "metal tube rocket launcher," 1942, from name of a junkyard musical instrument used (c. 1935) as a prop by U.S. comedian Bob Burns (1896-1956); extension of bazoo, slang for "mouth" or "boastful talk" (1877), probably from Dutch bazuin "trumpet."
yam (n.): 1580s, igname (current form by 1690s), from Portuguese inhame or Spanish igname, from a West African language (compare Fulani nyami "to eat;" Twi anyinam "species of yam"); the word in American and Jamaican English probably is directly from West African sources. The Malay name is ubi, whence German öbiswurzel.
zircon (n.): 1794, circon, also jargon, new name given in chemistry to jacinth, from French zircone and German Zirkon (compare French jargon, Italian giargone), from Arabic zarqun "cinnabar, bright red," from Persian zargun "gold-colored," from Avestan zari- "gold-colored," from zar "gold."
Zoroastrian (adj.): 1743, from Zoroaster, from Latin Zoroastres, from Old Persian Zarathushtra, 6c. or 7c. B.C.E. Persian religious teacher. The name appears to be literally "whose camels are old," from *zarant "old" (cognate with Greek geron, genitive gerontos "old;" see gerontology) + ushtra "camel." As a noun from 1811.
vermouth (n.): white wine flavored with aromatic herbs, 1806, from French vermouth (18c.), from German Wermuth "wormwood," from Middle High German wermuot, from Old High German wermuota (see wormwood), name of the aromatic herb formerly used in the flavoring of the liqueur.
Fergus: masc. proper name, from Gaelic Fearghus or Old Irish Fergus "man-ability," first element cognate with Latin vir "man" (see virile); second from Old Irish gus "ability, excellence, strength, inclination," from Celtic root *gustu- "choice," from PIE root *geus- "to taste" (see gusto).
Feringhee (n.): name used in India for "European; Englishman; Portuguese," 1630s, from Persian Farangi, from Arabic Faranji (10c.), from Old French Franc "Frank" (see Frank) + Arabic ethnic suffix -i. The fr- sound is impossible in Arabic.
carmine (n.): 1712, originally of the dyestuff, from French carmin (12c.), from Medieval Latin carminium, from Arabic qirmiz "crimson" (see kermes). Form influenced in Latin by minium "red lead, cinnabar," a word said to be of Iberian origin. As an adjective from 1737; as a color name from 1799.
cashmere (n.): 1680s, "shawl made of cashmere wool," from the old spelling of Kashmir, Himalayan kingdom where wool was obtained from long-haired goats. As a name for this kind of woolen fabric, favored for shawls, etc., it is attested from 1822.
Adelaide: fem. proper name, from French Adélaide, from a Germanic source similar to Old High German Adalhaid, from adal "noble family" (see atheling) + German heit "state, rank," related to Old English -had "person, degree, state, nature" (see -hood). The first element affixed to French fem. ending -ine gave Adeline.
adrenaline (n.): also Adrenalin (trademark name), coined 1901 by Japanese chemist Jokichi Takamine (1853-1922), who discovered it, from Modern Latin adrenal (see adrenal) + chemical suffix -ine (2). Adrenaline rush was in use c. 1970.
Adriatic: sea east of Italy, from Latin Adriaticus, from town of Atria (modern Atri) in Picenum, once a seaport but now more than 12 miles inland. The name is perhaps from atra, neuter of atrum "black," hence "the black city;" or else it represents Illyrian adur "water, sea."
derrick (n.): c. 1600, originally "hangman," then "a gallows," then "hoist, crane" (1727), from surname of a hangman at Tyburn gallows, London, c. 1606-1608, often referred to in contemporary theater. The name represents a late borrowing from the Low Countries (compare Dutch Diederik) of Old High German Theodric (see Dietrich).
derringer (n.): 1850, for Henry Deringer (1786-1868), U.S. gunsmith who invented it in the 1840s; prevailing misspelled form is how his name appeared on the many counterfeits and imitations. "A small pistol with a large bore, very effective at short range" [OED].
Oreo (n.): derogatory word for "black person felt to have a 'white' mentality," 1968, African-American vernacular, from the snack cookies, which consist of dark chocolate wafers and white sugar cream filling (hence "brown outside, white inside"). The cookies (made by Nabisco) date from 1912; the source of the name has been forgotten.
Manila: 1690s, capital of the Philippines, gave its name (with altered spelling) to manilla hemp (1814), original source of manilla paper (1832). Said to be from Tagalog may "there is" + nila "shrub of the indigo family," but this would not be a native word.
mantua (n.): loose gown worn by women 17c.-18c., 1670s, from French manteau "cloak, mantle," from Old French mantel (see mantle); form influenced in English by Mantua, name of a city in Italy. Mantua-maker (1690s) became the general early 19c. term for "dressmaker."
Niagara: waterfall from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario, from a town name, perhaps from an Iroquoian language and meaning "a neck" (between two bodies of water); general sense of "a cataract, torrent" is attested from 1841; meaning " 'shower' of ringlets (true or false) in women's hair" is from 1864, also known as cataract curls.
Orlando: masc. proper name, Italian form of Roland (q.v.). The city in Florida, U.S., so called from 1857, supposedly in honor of a U.S. soldier, Orlando Reeves, who was killed there in 1835 by Seminoles. It had been settled c. 1844 as Jernigan.
parcheesi (n.): 1800, from Hindi pachisi, from pachis "twenty-five" (highest throw of the dice), from Sanskrit panca "five" (see five) + vinsati-s "twenty." Modern spelling outside India, with intrusive -r-, was enshrined 1892 by trademark name.
Belial: early 13c., from Hebrew bel'yya'al "destruction," literally "worthless," from b'li "without" + ya'al "use." Wickedness as an evil force (Deut. xiii:13); later treated as a proper name for Satan (2 Cor. vi:15), though Milton made him one of the fallen angels.
celluloid (n.): transparent plastic made from nitro-celluloses and camphor, 1871, trademark name (reg. U.S.), a hybrid coined by U.S. inventor John Wesley Hyatt (1837-1900) from cellulose + Greek-based suffix -oid. Used figuratively for "motion pictures" from 1934. Abbreviated form cell "sheet of celluloid" is from 1933 (see cel).
Cerberus: "watch-dog guardian of Hades," late 14c., Latinized form of Greek Kerberos, which is of unknown origin, according to Klein perhaps cognate with Sanskrit karbarah, sabalah "spotted, speckled;" Sabalah was the name of one of the two dogs of Yama.
chalcedony (n.): c. 1300, from Latin calcedonius, in Vulgate translating Greek khalkedon in Rev. xxi:19, found nowhere else. Connection with Chalcedon in Asia Minor "is very doubtful" [OED]. The city name is from Phoenician and means "new town."
volcano (n.): 1610s, from Italian vulcano "burning mountain," from Latin Vulcanus "Vulcan," Roman god of fire, also "fire, flames, volcano" (see Vulcan). The name was first applied to Mt. Etna by the Romans, who believed it was the forge of Vulcan. Earlier form in English was volcan (1570s), from French.
charley horse (n.): 1887, sporting slang, origin obscure, probably from somebody's long-forgotten lame racehorse. Charley horse seems to have been a name for a horse or a type of horse (perhaps especially a lame one) around that time.
Chaucer: family name, from Old French chaucier "maker of chausses," from chauces "clothing for the legs, breeches, pantaloons, hose" (related to case (n.2)). Middle English chawce was a general term for anything worn on the feet. Related: Chaucerian.
Akkadian: 1855, from Akkad (Sumerian Agde, Biblical Acca), name of city founded by Sargon I in northern Babylonia, which is of unknown origin; applied by modern scholars to the east Semitic language spoken there (c. 2300-2100 B.C.E.) and preserved in cuneiform inscriptions.