Butts

wyrearchaeology · **Posted:** Fri Jun 26, 2009 7:56 pm

Dave,

I wouldn't mind if we had massively overused the phone/internet, but we hadn't. I just reckon that BT are a bunch of money grabbing retards. Whatever the case, I'll be off-line from around the start of next week...but I am working on alternatives, so hopefully it won't be for too long.

Jayne · **Joined:** Sun Apr 06, 2008 10:01 am **Posts:** 79

Jayne wrote:

Hi!
Where does the word 'butt' originate for water butt?

DaveH wrote:

Oxford Etymol suggests it's from Anglo Norman 'but' in turn from Old French 'bout' from Latin 'buttis' and maybe Greek 'buitne' meaning some sort of wine flask. - you did ask!

So, basically they were hoping their water from Heaven would be somehow turned into wine?

DaveH · **Posted:** Sun Jun 28, 2009 4:47 pm

Maybe - wine was always safer that water in olden days - I try to stick to this too.

I misread the Greek words however - it should have been butine or perhaps putine - an 'osier covered flask'. Interestingly (ok to me!) 'bottle' derives from French 'bouteille' and from Latin 'butticula' meaning little butt. So even over a thousand years ago someone was probably asking 'Does my butt look big in this osier?'

History Hunter · **Joined:** Fri Feb 13, 2009 6:22 pm **Posts:** 84

I've just found this in a book about old field names ...

Butt(s): (1) [ME butte] section of a common arable field which is shorter than other pieces in the same furlong, owing to the irregular shape of field boundaries, or owing to two furlongs meeting at an angle; (2) [OE butt] tree-stump, land covered with stumps of trees; (3) [ME butt] mound, site of archery targets.

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