[Ads-l] Kibosh - hippopotamus-hide whip, additional background

[Peter Reitan]

For anyone interested more background related to the recent discussion 
here of the etymology of Kibosh from the Middle Eastern whip, I ran 
across an early (1840) discussion of the preparation and use of whips 
made from the hippopotamus skin and the "dread of every servant and 
peasant" in Egypt, referred to with the alternate spelling of "korbadj".

This is the example I ran across.  There are numerous other references, 
many earlier, with the same spelling (Kourbadj appears in many French 
texts).

James Rennie, The Menageries, Quadrupeds, Volume 3, London, Charles 
Knight and Co., 1840, page 102. Available on HathiTrust

[Excerpt] The whips known in Egypt under the name of korbadj are made of 
its [(hippopotamus)] skin, and form an important article of trade with 
the Sennaar and Darfour caravans.  "After being taken off, the skin is 
cut into narrow strips, five or six feet long, and gradually tapering to 
a point; each strip is then rolled up so that the edges unite and form a 
pipe, in which state they are tied fast, and left to dry in the sun.  To 
render them pliable, they must be rubbed with butter or grease.  In 
Egypt, where they are in general use, and the dread of every servant and 
peasant, they cost from half a dollar to a dollar each.  In colder 
climates, even in Syria, they become brittle, crack, and lose their 
elasticity."[End excerpt]

First Described by Johann Ludwig Burckhardt around 1820.

An Englishman named Turner brought one to London as early as 1820.
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=hvd.hw3foy&view=1up&seq=385

An 1822 book with a nearly identical description of the Korbadj also 
gives the Arabic spelling.
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=hvd.32044107256182&view=1up&seq=370

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