Etymology of "Maverick"?

[Baker, John]

        Google Books shows that the association with Maverick was
well-established by the 1870s, which wasn't long after the emergence of
the word (1867 in M-W).


John Baker


-----Original Message-----
From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf
Of Shapiro, Fred
Sent: Wednesday, November 19, 2008 6:09 PM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: Etymology of "Maverick"?

Someone has written to me questioning the derivation of "maverick" from
the name of Samuel A. Maverick of Texas.  The OED accepts that
derivation, but I am interested to find out whether anyone knows of any
research or arguments for or against the Sam Maverick origin, so I can
respond properly to my correspondent.

Fred Shapiro

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