mammoth

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈmæməθ/^[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Russian мамот (mamot) (now mamont),^[2][3][4][5] first used of the remains of the animal found in Siberia.^[6][2] The Russian word probably comes from a Finno-Ugric language, Ostyak,^[4][5] though the American Heritage Dictionary says this has not been proved.^[2] Barnhart and Etymonline compare Finnish maa “earth”, since the animal, dug out of the ground, was thought to burrow like a mole.^[4][5]

Earliest recorded meaning

The large extinct elephant of Europe and northern Asia (1698 in the OED; 1706 in other sources).^{[7][2][4][5][3]}

Semantic evolution

The adjective “gigantic” is recorded from 1802 and appears to be American;^[5][7][4] its first uses mock the huge cheese presented to President Jefferson by Baptist women of Cheshire, Massachusetts.^[5] The figurative noun, “something of huge size”, followed in 1894.^[7]

Timeline

• 1698–1706 – the extinct elephant.^[7][2][3]
• 1802 – adjective, huge (American).^[7][3][4][5]
• 1816 – also used of the mastodon (US).^[7]
• 1894 – something of huge size.^[7]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. Any of various large, hairy extinct elephants of the genus Mammuthus, with long curving tusks.
2. Something very large of its kind.

Adjective

1. Of enormous size; huge.

References

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