LL-L 'Etymology' 2006.08.10 (03) [D/E]

Thu Aug 10 16:42:50 UTC 2006

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L O W L A N D S - L * 10 August 2006 * Volume 03
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From: 'Kevin Caldwell' <kevin.caldwell1963 at verizon.net>
Subject: LL-L 'Etymology' 2006.08.10 (01) [D/E/LS]

> From: Heather Rendall <HeatherRendall at compuserve.com>
> Subject: LL-L 'Etymology' 2006.08.08 (01) [E]
>
> Message text written by INTERNET:lowlands-l at LOWLANDS-L.NET
> >One of them I found in Van Dale Etymologisch woordenboek:
> "doop [sauce, gravy, but in the meaning of a lubricating liquid, and more
> specially a mixture of tar, resin, oil, gunpowder for _fireworks_". I am
> not
> an expert in the field at all, but it looks more like napalm to me.
> Anybody
> here with pyrotechnical skills who can help me out?<
>
> Early planes made of material were 'doped' to make the material stiff and
> water resistant. Aircraft dope gives off fumes which might be akin to
> gluesniffing if those dedicated mechanics, who painted the planes with
> dope, had known about mind-altering substances.
>
> Could there be a connection here?
>
> Heather

While I'm sure that meaning of 'dope' is related to the others (aircraft
dope is a thick liquid), I doubt that it's directly connected to the use of
"dope" to mean "a narcotic drug".

> From: 'Global Moose Translations' <globalmoose at t-online.de>
> Subject: LL-L 'Etymology' 2006.08.08 (02) [D/E]
>
> I am pretty sure that "dope" is short for the hormone dopamine, which also
> acts as a neurotransmitter. Many mind-altering drugs affect the dopamine
> balance in your body.
>
> Quoting http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dopamine (for more information, read
> the whole article - it is lengthy and very informative):
>
> Dopamine is commonly associated with the pleasure system of the brain,
> providing feelings of enjoyment and reinforcement to motivate proactively
> perform certain activities. Dopamine is released (particularly in areas
> such
> as the nucleus accumbens and striatum) by naturally rewarding experiences
> such as food, sex, use of certain drugs and neutral stimuli that become
> associated with them. This theory is often discussed in terms of drugs
> (such
> as cocaine and amphetamines), which seem to be directly or indirectly
> related to the increase of dopamine in these areas, and in relation to
> neurobiological theories of chemical addiction, arguing that these
> dopamine
> pathways are pathologically altered in addicted persons. However, cocaine
> and amphetamine influence separate mechanisms of action.
>
> Gabriele Kahn

Actually I would suspect that some scientist decided to call that hormone
'dopamine' because of its connection with the effects of dope.

Here's what the Merriam-Webster Online dictionary has to say about 'dope':

"Etymology: Dutch doop sauce, from dopen to dip; akin to Old English dyppan
to dip
1 a : a thick liquid or pasty preparation b : a preparation for giving a
desired quality to a substance or surface
2 : absorbent or adsorbent material used in various manufacturing processes
(as the making of dynamite)
3 a (1) : an illicit, habit-forming, or narcotic drug; especially :
MARIJUANA (2) : a preparation given to a racehorse to help or hinder its
performance b chiefly Southern : a cola drink c : a stupid person
4 : information especially from a reliable source "

I'm from the American South, and I don't think I've ever heard cola drinks
called 'dope'. In fact, they're usually all called 'coke' (even non-cola
carbonated beverages are generically called 'coke' in parts of the South).

Also, the use of performance enhancing drugs in humans is known as doping.

In modern urban American slang, 'dope' means 'excellent', as in, "Yo, that's
dope!" (sort of the opposite of "Yo, that's wack!"

Then there's the phrase, "and that's no dope", which means "I'm not
kidding."

Kevin Caldwell

----------

From: 'Douglas G. Wilson' <douglas at nb.net>
Subject: LL-L 'Etymology' 2006.08.10 (01) [D/E/LS]

>I am pretty sure that "dope" is short for the hormone dopamine, which also
>acts as a neurotransmitter.

"Dopamine" dates from 1959 according to my OED. The word is derived from
"dopa" (variously capitalized) which appears to date from 1917 (adopted
from German), originally a chemical abbreviation.

"Dope" in English has a longer history. HDAS shows a quotation from Irving
(1807) where "doup" is given as a Dutch word for gravy. Likely this is the
basic sense and origin. HDAS shows "dope" meaning "unwholesome liquid" from
1872, and meaning "stupefying or stimulating drug" from 1900; apparently it
originally referred to an illicit drug given to a racehorse (I suppose in
liquid form).

-- Doug Wilson

----------

From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Etymology

Hello, Doug!

I believe this is your first posting.  Welcome to the speakers' corner!

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

----------

From: 'Frank' <frank.verhoft at skynet.be>
Subject: LL-L 'Etymology'

Beste Piet, beste allemaal,

Bedankt voor je reactie!

Piet:
<<
voorstellen dat de oorsprong van _dope_ in het Nederlands gezocht moet
worden. _doop_ ken ik alleen als een rituele besprenkeling of
onderdompeling. [...]
Nee, dit zullen toch geen Nederlandse uitvindingen zijn?<<<

De meeste etymologische woordenboeken (ODEE, Van Dale, Kluge) zijn het er
over eens dat het Engelse _woord_ 'dope' teruggaat op het Nederlandse
_woord_ 'doop' (saus). Dit is evenwel niet hetzelfde als zeggen dat
_dope_/_doping_ een Nederlandse uitvinding is.
'Doop' in de betekenis van 'saus' is terug te vinden in Van Dale (13de ed.).
Doop 1 verwijst naar het doopsel -- uiteraard, maar doop 2 betekent (a)
saus, (b) een mengsel op basis van hars, olie etc.

Het woord _doop_ (saus) is inderdaad verwant aan _dopen_ en _doop_
(onderdompeling), het zijn zgn. cognaten.

Op zich gaat 'dopen' in de zin van ritueel besprenkelen met water terug op
het Gotische 'daupjan' (go. vert. van 'baptizein'), en zou het via Beieren
en het Hoogduits in het Nederduits en Nederlands verzeild zijn geraakt.
Blijkbaar is het gebruik van het woord 'dope' met de betekenis van
'stimulerende middelen' voor het eerste gebruikt in de VS.

<<<<<
Ik denk dat we er van mogen uitgaan dat 'doping', in welke vorm dan ook,
even oud is als competitie :-).

Met vriendelijke groeten,

Frank Verhoft

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