chowder

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈt͡ʃaʊdɚ/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is apparently borrowed from French chaudière (“cooking pot, kettle”),^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from Late Latin caldāria (“cooking pot”),^{[2][3][4][5][6]} from Latin calidus “warm, hot”.^[4] It is related to cauldron.^[2][3][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

A dish of fresh fish, especially cod, stewed with pork or bacon, onions and biscuit (1751, American English).^[7][3][4][5]

Semantic evolution

The dish was apparently named after the pot it was cooked in.^[4] Breton fishermen brought the word and the practice to Newfoundland, and from there they spread to Nova Scotia and New England.^[3][4] Clam chowder is recorded from 1822 and is the commonest modern variety, made with milk in New England and with tomatoes in the Manhattan style.^[4] The word now also covers similar soups without seafood, such as corn chowder.^[2][5]

Timeline

• 1732 – verb, to make into chowder.^[5][7]
• 1751 – noun, a fish stew, in American English.^[7][3][4][5]
• 1822 – clam chowder.^[4]
• 1826 – chowder party.^[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A thick soup of fish or shellfish, especially clams, with potatoes, onions and milk or tomatoes.
2. A similar thick soup made with vegetables, such as corn.

Verb

1. To make seafood into chowder.

Word family

• clam chowder

Related words

• cauldron
• caldera

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
7. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press