Summary Details
| Query: |
Origin of Pot 'Cannabis'
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| Author: | Max Wheeler | |
| Submitter Email: | click here to access email | |
| Linguistic LingField(s): |
Lexicography
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| Summary: |
I asked the following:
''The Oxford English Dictionary s.v. POT n.5 says 'prob. f. Mexican Sp._potiguaya_ marijuana leaves'. Many English language websites tell the same story, some giving the supposed variant Spanish forms _potaguaya_ or _potacion de guaya_. ''I have so far found no evidence that _potiguaya_, _potaguaya_ or _potacion de guaya_ are in fact used in Spanish. I would be interested to know of any evidence that any of these expressions is used in any variety of Spanish. If any of them is used, I would also like to know the meaning.'' None of the replies has confirmed the use of any of these three variant expressions in Spanish. Philip Durkin explains the source of the OED's etymology: David W. Maurer 'Argot of the Underworld Narcotic Addict' American Speech 11 (1936) 116-27: ''potiguaya, Marajuana (sic) leaves after the pods have been removed; crude marajuana''. Among the alternative ideas, Scott DeLancey suggests that ''_pot_ is metonymic extension of _tea_, which is a widespread term for cannabis (in the form of dried leaves)''. David Drewelow suggests other possible metonymies from e.g. a pipe with a 'pot bowl', or marijuana as a 'potted plant', or 'drug pots' for holding or drying drugs, and draws to my notice that Nahuatl _poctli_ means 'smoke'. So far, though, no documentary or circumstantial evidence points to a choice between these various possibilities, or towards any of these in preference to other conceivable or actual suggestions. The mystery remains. Many thanks to those mentioned above and to Damien Hall, Lee Hartman and Otto Carsten |
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| LL Issue: | 16.2853 | |
| Date Posted: | 04-Oct-2005 | |
| Original Query: | Read original query | |
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