# Words that are somewhat unexpectedly named after people. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 15, 2008, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899 "2008-11-15T21:10:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/41 "2008-11-16T14:16:24Z")
> [@dawson](#): > > Hooker - said to be named after Major General Joseph Hooker, of the Union Army. It can be shown that the term “hooker” for a prostitute is NOT derived from Gen. Hooker. It exists as far back as 1845 with that meaning. Gen. Hooker _may_ have played a roll in popularizing it. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/42 "2008-11-16T14:55:00Z")
Dozens of flowers and plants are named after people who either discovered or popularized them (dahlia, poinsettia, fuchsia…). And all kinds of foods, from the reuben (named after Reuben Kay) sandwich to Fettucine Alfredo and Beef Stroganoff and Eggs Benedict. ---
**Author:** ![Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8797f3/32.png) [@Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ins_Outs_What-have-yous)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/43 "2008-11-16T15:47:28Z")
It looks as if no one has mentioned ‘[gaudy](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gaudy)’ yet. The term was coined from Antonio Gaudí, a renowned Spanish architect whose architecture was indeed gaudy. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/44 "2008-11-16T15:57:11Z")
> [@Ins\_Outs\_What-have-yous](#): > > It looks as if no one has mentioned ‘[gaudy](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/gaudy)’ yet. > > The term was coined from Antonio Gaudí, a renowned Spanish architect whose architecture was indeed gaudy. Read your link, again. Gaudy came from the Latin word for rejoice because at various religious festivals folks tended to wear their “glad rags.” (The phrase “glad rag” being an anachronism in this case, of course.) Gaudi is provided as a folk etymology–meaning someone who had no idea what the actual etymology might have been made that up because they perceived a connection that did not actually exist. = = = If anyone wishes to seriously cheat in this thread, simply look up Willard Espy’s O Thou Improper, Thou Uncommon Noun in which he lists a few hundred names that have entered the language as nouns, verbs, and adjectives. ---
**Author:** ![Sublight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/45 "2008-11-16T15:59:18Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Thag Simmons gave us the [thagomizer](http://mentalfloss.cachefly.net/wp-content/uploads/2007/07/MF_thagomizer.jpg). The best part is that “thagomizer” has more-or-less been adopted by the current generation of paleontologists as the name for dinosaur tail spikes. [Thagomizer](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thagomizer) ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/46 "2008-11-16T16:35:04Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > **pasteurize** from _Louis Pasteur_ As I youth I enjoyed the book _The Microbe Hunters_ so I knew that “pasteurization” was named after Louis Pasteur and it involved sterilizing at a high heat. One day, staring pensively at the milk carton over breakfast, I ask my mom who “Mr. Homogen” was and what he invented. She was utterly perplexed by my question. It took her a while to a) figure out that I had assumed “homogenization” was also named after an individual and had extrapolated his name; b) set me straight that it was not; and c) explain what “homogeneous” meant. 😃 I was a very literal child. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/47 "2008-11-16T16:51:47Z")
> [@phouka](#): > > We often call someone with a loud voice [stentorian](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stentor). Stentor was the herald of the Greek forces during the Trojan War. He was supposed to have a voice as loud as fifty men shouting. [QUOTE=the Wiki link] He died after his defeat by Hermes in a shouting contest. [/QUOTE] That is so nice. That’s just so like the Greeks, always mocking things up with their hubris. It reminds me of [Arachne](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arachne), who came to a sticky end after thinking she could beat Minerva (Athena) in a weaving contest. Of course, she ended up with the goddess turning her into a spider. You might recognize her name from _arachnophobia_. (That one isn’t actually an example of stuff named after people, though. It seems to be an [etiological](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etiological_myth#Mythology)story, with the word arachne simply meaning spider in Greek and the Romans later making up the weaving story.) Anyway, here’s an odd one: [Tarmac](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarmac). The word is short for “tarmacadam”, which is a portmanteau of “tar” and “macadam”, where the “macadam” part is a [kind of road construction](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macadam) and named after [John Loudon McAdam](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Loudon_McAdam), who invented the stuff. You get your tarmac when you add tar to your macadam. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/48 "2008-11-16T17:23:05Z")
> [@Sublight](#): > > The best part is that “thagomizer” has more-or-less been adopted by the current generation of paleontologists as the name for dinosaur tail spikes. I was going to mention that if anyone complained it’s not a ‘real word’. 😉😃 ---
**Author:** ![Sternvogel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Sternvogel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sternvogel)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/49 "2008-11-16T17:58:48Z")
[German chocolate cake](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_chocolate_cake) is not a dessert from _Deutschland_. Rather, it derives its name from Baker’s German’s Sweet Chocolate, a product which honors Baker’s Chocolate company founder John Baker and employee Samuel German. Veterinary pathologist Daniel Elmer Salmon lent his name to [salmonella](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salmonella). ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/50 "2008-11-16T19:26:56Z")
> [@Hello\_Again](#): > > One day, staring pensively at the milk carton over breakfast, I ask my mom who “Mr. Homogen” was and what he invented. She was utterly perplexed by my question. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/51 "2008-11-16T19:28:58Z")
Southern blotting is named after Edward(?) Southern, who invented it. Northern and Western blots are named after the Southern blot, as kind of a joke. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/52 "2008-11-16T19:56:00Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > And all kinds of foods, from the reuben (named after Reuben Kay) sandwich to Fettucine Alfredo and Beef Stroganoff and Eggs Benedict. The Reuben sandwich, as we know it today, can only be dated to the winner of a 1956 recipe contest. > **[Reuben Sandwich (and Rachel Sandwich, Celebrity Sandwiches)](https://barrypopik.com/blog/reuben_sandwich_and_rachel_sandwich_celebrity_sandwiches)** > > Arnold Reuben (1883-1970) began his restaurant in the 1910s and it became famous for its celebrity-named sandwiches, a tradition continued by the… ---
**Author:** ![Dublin11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Dublin11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dublin11)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/53 "2008-11-16T23:27:15Z")
> [@indian](#): > > \*\*Kafkaesque \*\* from the famous writer’s name. How can that be unexpected? No one who knows what it means could possibly not know where it came from and anyone who didn’t know what it meant or who Kafka was wouldn’t be using it, would they? ---
**Author:** ![audient](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@audient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audient)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2008, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/54 "2008-11-16T23:52:25Z")
Some yiddish words come from characters in plays: Yenta - was the matchmaker’s name in Fiddler on the roof. The actual word for matchmaker is “shadchen”, but it’s largely forgotten now, in favor of Yenta Shmendrick - was the title character in a play. He was, well, a shmendrick. ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/55 "2008-11-17T00:33:12Z")
> [@audient](#): > > Some yiddish words come from characters in plays: > > Yenta - was the matchmaker’s name in Fiddler on the roof. The actual word for matchmaker is “shadchen”, but it’s largely forgotten now, in favor of Yenta > > Shmendrick - was the title character in a play. He was, well, a shmendrick. Shmendrick I agree with. “Yenta” I don’t. It’s out there much before Fiddler. Fiddler perhaps popularized it. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/56 "2008-11-17T04:26:44Z")
The Polaroid Land [instant] camera was not an alternative to a sea camera, but named after Dr Land. Guillotine A [Furphy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furphy) is an Australian term for an unsubstantiated rumour. Pompadour Klieg light Mogul Doily Galvanise Hansard Chauvinism Mausoleum ---
**Author:** ![audient](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@audient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/audient)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/57 "2008-11-17T05:31:11Z")
lavalier microphones are named for lavalier pendants, which were popularized by Louise de La Vallière, mistress of Louis XIV ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/58 "2008-11-17T05:51:31Z")
Not to hijack, but I [just realized something](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=10457220&postcount=222). Whoah. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/59 "2008-11-17T07:24:59Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > Mogul :dubious: [Mogul seems to mean “mongol”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_magnate), and in the context of “rich person” it apparently refers to the emperors of the [Mughal Empire](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mughal_Empire). It doesn’t refer to one specific dude. I’ll chuck in the [Fallopian tubes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallopian_tube#Etymology_and_nomenclature), after Gabriele Falloppio. ---
**Author:** ![Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alive_At_Both_Ends)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2008, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899/60 "2008-11-17T13:45:20Z")
> [@WarmNPrickly](#): > > I know [Thomas Crapper](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crapper) didn’t invent the toilet, but does his name play any role in the the etymology of the word “crap”. No. “Crap” is Middle English. [Link](http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=crap&searchmode=none) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-somewhat-unexpectedly-named-after-people/472899.md?page=4)