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Origin and history of backwater

backwater(n.)

also back-water, late 14c., "water behind a dam," from back (adj.) + water (n.1). Hence flat water without a current near a flowing river, as in a mill race (1820); the figurative use of this for any flat, dull place is from 1879.

also from late 14c.

Entries linking to backwater

back(adj.)

"being behind, away from the front, in a backward direction," Middle English, from back (n.) and back (adv.); it is often difficult to distinguish from these when the word is used in combinations. Formerly with comparative backer (c. 1400), also backermore. To be on the back burner in the figurative sense of "postponed" is by 1960, from the image of a cook keeping a pot there to simmer while at work on another concoction at the front of the stove.

water(n.1)

Old English wæter, from Proto-Germanic *watr- (source also of Old Saxon watar, Old Frisian wetir, Dutch water, Old High German wazzar, German Wasser, Old Norse vatn, Gothic wato "water"), from PIE *wod-or, suffixed form of root *wed- (1) "water; wet." In ancient conceptions one of the handful of basic elements of which everything is composed.

To have one's head above water (and thus avoid drowning) is by 1660s; in the figurative sense "out of difficulty" it is recorded from 1742.

Water-cure for healing therapies involving water is by 1842. The crowd-control water-cannon is so called by 1964; water-fountain "drinking fountain" is by 1946. Water-buffalo is attested by 1894. Water polo is attested from 1884; water torture from 1928.

Waters for "seas of a particular region," especially "maritime claims of a nation," is by 1650s.

Linguists believe PIE had two root words for water: *ap- and *wed-. The first (preserved in Sanskrit apah as well as Punjab and julep) was "animate," referring to water as a living force; the latter referred to it as an inanimate substance. The same probably was true of fire (n.).

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    capitals) that west of Philadelphia, from the "main line" of the Pennsylvania Railroad which added local stops to a string of backwater...
    ignore
    1610s, "not to know, to be ignorant of," from French ignorer "be unaware of" (14c.), or directly from Latin ignorare "not to know, be unacquainted; take no notice of, disregard" (see ignorant). The original sense in English is obsolete. Sense of "pass over without notice, pay no
    region
    c. 1300, regioun, "tract of land of a considerable but indefinite extent," also "a kingdom, country, nation; the people of a country," from Anglo-French regioun, Old French region "land, region, province" (12c.) and directly from Latin regionem (nominative regio) "a district, por
    teetotal
    "pledged to total abstinence from intoxicating drink," 1834, a word possibly formed from total (adj.) with a reduplication of the initial T- for emphasis (T-totally "totally," though not in an abstinence sense, is recorded in Kentucky dialect from 1832 and is possibly older in Ir
    lugubrious
    "expressing or characterized by sadness or mournfulness; doleful," c. 1600, formerly also lugubrous, from -ous + Latin lugubris "mournful, doleful, pertaining to mourning," from lugere "to mourn," from PIE root *leug- "to break; to cause pain" (source also of Greek lygros "mournf
    institute
    early 14c., "to establish in office, appoint," from Latin institutus, past participle of instituere "to set up, put in place; arrange; found, establish; appoint, designate; govern, administer; teach, instruct," from in- "in" (from PIE root *en "in") + statuere "establish, to caus
    climate
    late 14c., "horizontal zone of the earth's surface measured by lines parallel to the equator," from Old French climat "region, part of the earth," from Latin clima (genitive climatis) "region; slope of the earth," from Greek klima "region, zone," literally "an inclination, slope,
    luxury
    c. 1300, "sexual intercourse;" mid-14c., "lasciviousness, sinful self-indulgence;" late 14c., "sensual pleasure," from Old French luxurie "debauchery, dissoluteness, lust" (12c., Modern French luxure), from Latin luxuria "excess, extravagant living, profusion; delicacy" (source a
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    c. 1500, "trade, commerce," from  French trafique (15c.), from Italian traffico (14c.), from trafficare "carry on trade," of uncertain origin, perhaps from a Vulgar Latin *transfricare "to rub across," from Latin trans "across" (see trans-) + fricare "to rub" (see friction),
    brute
    early 15c., "of or belonging to animals, non-human," from Old French brut "coarse, brutal, raw, crude," from Latin brutus "heavy, dull, stupid, insensible, unreasonable" (source also of Spanish and Italian bruto), said to be an Oscan word, from PIE *gwruto-, suffixed form of root

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