A- (3) prefix meaning "not," from Gk a-, an- "not," from pie base *ne "not" (see un-)

drop (n.) --- O.E. dropa, from P.Gmc. drupon, from PIE *dhreub-. The verb (O.E.) originally meant "fall in drops;" trans. sense "allow to fall" is c.1340. Meaning "lozenge, hard candy" is 1723. Dim. form droplet is from 1607. Drop in the bucket (1382) is from Isa. ix.15 [K.J.V.]. Exclamation drop dead is from 1934; as an adj. meaning "stunning, excellent" it is first recorded 1970. At the drop of a hat "suddenly" is from 1854; drop-in "casual visit" is 1819; drop-kick is 1857; drop-out (n.) first attested 1930.

dropsy --- c.1290, aphetic of M.E. ydropsy, from O.Fr. idropsie, from L. hydropsis, from Gk. hydrops (gen. hydropos) "dropsy," from hydor "water" (see water (n.1)).

dross --- O.E. dros "dirt, dregs," from P.Gmc. *drohs- (cf. Ger. Drusen "dregs, husks"). Originally "the scum thrown off from metals in smelting." Related to O.E. dreosan "to drip."

drought --- O.E. drugað, from P.Gmc. *drugothaz; related to drugian "dry up, whither" + -ith Gmc. suffix for forming abstract n. from adj. Drouth was a M.E. variant continued in Scot. and northern Eng. dialect.

drove (n.) --- O.E. draf "beasts driven in a body," originally "act of driving," from drifan "to drive." Drover is from c.1425.

drown --- c.1300, perhaps from O.E. druncnian "be swallowed up by water" (originally of ships as well as living things), from base of drincan "to drink." Modern form is from northern England dialect, probably infl. by O.N. drukna "be drowned."

drowsy --- c.1529, from O.E. drusan, drusian "sink," also "become low, slow, or inactive" (related to dreosan "to fall"), from P.Gmc. *drus- (see dreary). Drowsy is a 1573 back-formation.

drub --- 1634 (in an Oriental travel narrative), probably from Arabic darb "a beating," from daraba "he beat up."

drudge (n.) --- 1494, "one employed in mean, servile, or distasteful work," missing in O.E. and M.E., but apparently related to O.E. dreogan "to work, suffer, endure." The verb is from 1548. Drudgery is from 1550.

drug --- 1327, from O.Fr. drogue, perhaps from M.Du. or M.L.G. droge-vate "dry barrels," with first element mistaken as word for the contents (see dry goods), or because medicines mostly consisted of dried herbs. Application to "narcotics and opiates" is 1883, though association with "poisons" is 1500s. The verb is from 1605. Druggie first recorded 1968. Drug-store is 1810; drug-store cowboy is 1925, Amer.Eng. slang, originally one who dressed like a Westerner but obviously wasn't. To be a drug on or in the market (c.1661) is of doubtful connection and may be a different word, perhaps drag, which was sometimes drug c.1240-1800.

Druid --- 1509, from O.Fr. druide, from L. Druidae (pl.), from Gaulish Druides, from O.Celt. *derwijes, representing O.Celt. derwos "true" and *dru- "tree" (especially oak) + *wid- "to know" (cf. vision). Hence, lit., perhaps, "they who know the oak." O.E., too, had the same word for "tree" and "truth" (treow). The Eng. form comes via L., not immediately from Celtic. The O.Ir. form was drui (dat. and acc. druid; pl. druad); Mod.Ir. and Gael. draoi, gen. druadh "magician, sorcerer." Not to be confused with United Ancient Order of Druids, secret benefit society founded in London 1781.

drum --- 1420s, from M.Du. tromme "drum," probably of imitative origin. Not common before 1575. To drum up (business, etc.) is Amer.Eng. 1839, from the old way of drawing a crowd. Drumstick is from 1589; applied to the lower joint of cooked fowl 1764.

drumlin --- 1833, dim. of drum (1725) "ridge or long, narrow hill," often separating two parallel valleys, from Gael. & Ir. druim "back, ridge."

Drummond light --- torch that burns calcium oxide (lime) and gives off intense white light, 1854, named for Scottish engineer Capt. Thomas Drummond, R.E., (1797-1840), who invented it c.1825.

drunk --- pp. of drink, used as an adj. from c.1340. In various expressions, e.g. "drunk as a lord" (1891); Chaucer has "dronke ... as a Mous" (c.1386); and, my personal favorite, from 1709, is, "He's as Drunk as a Wheelbarrow." Medieval folklore distinguished four successive stages of drunkenness, based on the animals they made men resenble: sheep, lion, ape, sow. Drunk driver first recorded 1948. Drunk-tank "jail cell for drunkards" is 1947, Amer.Eng. The noun meaning "drunken person" is from 1852; earlier this would have been a drunkard (1530), from M.E. dronken, participal adj. + -ard; first recorded 1275 as a surname, Druncard.

Druse --- member of a Muslim sect centered in Lebanon, 1786, from Arabic duruz, pl. of darazi, from name of the sect founder, Ismail ad-Darazi (11c.), lit. "Ismail the Tailor."

Drusilla --- fem. proper name, L. fem. dim. of Drusus, frequent surname in Livian gens, earlier Drausus, perhaps a Celt. word, lit. "strong" (cf. O.Celt. *dru- "oak," also "strong").

druthers --- 1895, jocular formation from I'd ruther, Amer.Eng. dialectal form of I'd rather (used by Bret Harte as drathers, 1875).

dry --- O.E. dryge (adj.), drygan (v.), from P.Gmc. *draugiz. Of humor, 1542; of places prohibiting alcoholic drink, 1870 (but dry feast, one at which no liquor is served, is from 1483). Of the two n. spellings, drier is the older (1528), while dryer (1874) was first used of machines. Dry goods (1708) were those measured out in dry, not liquid, measure. Dry land (that not under the sea) is from c.1225. Dry out in the drug addiction sense is from 1967. Dry up "stop talking" is 1853.

dryad --- 1555, from L. dryas, from Gk. dryas "wood nymph," from drus "oak," from I.E. derew(o)- "tree, wood."

du jour --- from Fr. plat du jour "dish of the day," early 20c. on restaurant menus, abstracted as an all-purpose modifier 1989.

dual --- 1607, from L. dualis, from duo "two." Dualism is first recorded 1794, from Fr. dualisme, in philosophical and theological senses. Duality is attested from c.1400.

dub (1) --- give a name to, originally "make a knight," from O.E. dubbian "knight by striking with a sword" (11c.), a late word, perhaps borrowed from O.Fr. aduber "equip with arms, adorn," of uncertain origin.

dub (2) --- add or alter sound on film, 1929, shortening of double; so called because it involves re-recording voices onto a soundtrack. The type of re-mixed reggae music was so called from 1974, probably for the same reason.

dubious --- 1548, from L. dubiosus "doubtful," from dubium "doubt," neuter of dubius "doubtful," from duo "two," in the sense of "of two minds, undecided between two things." O.E. also used tweo "two" to mean "doubt."

Dublin --- capital of Ireland, lit. "black pool," from Ir. dubh "black" + linn "pool." In ref. to the dark waters of the River Liffey.

Dubonnet --- sweet Fr. aperitif, 1913, trademark name, from the name of a family of Fr. wine merchants.

ducal --- 1494, from M.Fr. ducal, from L.L. ducalis, from L. dux (see duke).

ducat --- c.1384, from O.Fr. ducat, from It. ducato, from M.L. ducatus "coin," originally "duchy," from dux (gen. ducis) "duke" (see duke). So called for the name or effigy of Roger II of Sicily, Duke of Apulia, which first issued the coins (c.1140). The legend on them read, "Sit tibi, Christe, datus, quem tu regis, iste ducatus." Byzantine emperor Constantine X had the Gk. form doux struck on his coins during his reign (1059-67). Over the years it was a unit of currency of varying value in Holland, Russia, Austria, Sweden, Venice, etc. Remained popular in slang for "money" or "ticket" from its prominence in "The Merchant of Venice."

Duce --- 1923, title assumed by Benito Mussolini 1883-1945), It., lit. "leader," from L. ducem (see duke).

duchess --- c.1300, from O.Fr. duchesse, from L.L. or M.L. ducissa, fem. of dux (see duke).

duchy --- 1382, "territory ruled by a duke or duchess," from duke (q.v.).

duck (n.1) --- O.E. duce (found only in gen. ducan) "a duck," lit. "a ducker," presumed to be from O.E. *ducan "to duck" (see duck (v.)), replaced O.E. ened as the name for the bird, this being from PIE *aneti-, the root of the "duck" noun in most I.E. languages. As a term of endearment, attested from 1590. duck-walk is 1930s; duck soup "anything easily done" is from 1908. Lame duck, originally Stock Exchange slang for "defaulter," is first attested 1761. Duck's ass haircut is from 1951. Ducks-and-drakes, skipping flat stones on water, is from 1583; the fig. sense of "throwing something away recklessly" is c.1600. The ugly ducking is from Hans Andersen's tale.

duck (n.2) --- strong, untwilled linen (later cotton) fabric, used for sails and sailors' clothing, 1640, from Du. doeck "linen cloth," related to Ger. Tuch "piece of cloth."

duck (v.) --- to plunge into (trans.), c.1300; to suddenly go under water (intrans.), c.1340, from presumed O.E. *ducan "to duck," found only in derivative duce (n.) "duck" (but there are cognate words in other Gmc. languages, cf. Ger. tauchen "to dive"), from P.Gmc. *dukjan. Sense of "bend, stoop quickly" is first recorded in Eng. 1530.

ducky --- excellent, slang from 1897; probably not related to much earlier slang noun meaning "a woman's breast" ["...whose pritty duckys I trust shortly to kysse," Henry VIII, letter to Anne Boleyn, c.1536].

duct --- 1650, from L. ductus "a leading," pp. of ducere "to lead" (see duke). Ductile was in M.E.

ductile --- c.1340, from O.Fr. ductile, from L. ductilis "that may be led or drawn," from ducere "to lead" (see duke).

dud --- 1307, dudde "cloak, mantle," later duds "ragged clothing" (1508), of uncertain origin. Extended c.1825 to "person in ragged clothing," in 1897 to "counterfeit thing," and 1908 to "useless, inefficient person or thing." This led naturally in WWI to "shell which fails to explode," and thence to "expensive failure."

dude --- 1883, "fastidious man," New York City slang of unknown origin. The vogue word of 1883, originally used in ref. to the devotees of the "aesthetic" craze, later applied to city slickers, especially Easterners vacationing in the West (dude ranch first recorded 1921). Surfer slang application to any male is first recorded c.1970. Female form dudine (1883) has precedence over dudess (1885).

dudgeon --- 1573, duggin, of unknown origin. One suggestion is It. aduggiare "to overshadow," giving it the same sense development as umbrage. No clear connection to earlier dudgeon (1380), a kind of wood used for knife handles, which is perhaps from a Fr. word.

due --- c.1340, from O.Fr. deu, pp. of devoir "to owe," from L. debere "to owe" (see debt). In ref. to points of the compass (e.g. due east) it is attested from 1601, originally nautical, from notion of "fitting, rightful." Dues "fee for membership" is from 1670. "Giue them their due though they were diuels" [1589].

duel --- c.1475, from M.L. duellum "combat between two persons," by association with L. duo "two," but originally from L. duellum "war," an Old Latin form of bellum. Retained in poetic and archaic language and apparently given a special meaning in M.L. or L.L. of "one-on-one combat" on fancied connection with duo "two."

duenna --- 1668, "chief lady in waiting upon the queen of Spain," also "an elderly woman in charge of girls from a Sp. family," from Sp. dueña "married lady, mistress" (fem. of dueño "master"), from L. domina. Sense extended in Eng. to "any elderly woman chaperon of a younger woman" (1708).

duet --- 1740, from It. duetto "short musical composition for two voices," dim. of duo "two."

duff --- buttocks, rump, 1830s, of unknown origin.

duffer --- old man, also "bad golfer," 1842, probably from Scot. duffar "dull or stupid person." But perhaps rather from 18c. thieves' slang duff (v.) "to dress or manipulate an old thing and make it look new."

duffle --- 1677, from Du. duffel, from Duffel, town in Brabant where the cloth was originally sold. Duffel bag is Amer.Eng., first recorded 1917 in a letter of e e cummings.

dug (n.) --- animal nipple, or, contemptuously, "the human female breast," 1530, origin obscure, related to Swed. dagga, Dan. dægge "to suckle."

Dugan --- from Ir. Dubhagan, dim. of dubh "black."

dugong --- 1800, from Malay duyung, which is dugung in the Philippines.

dugout --- canoe, 1722, Amer.Eng., from dug, pp. of dig + out. Baseball sense is first recorded 1914, from c.1855 meaning of "rough shelter."

duke --- 1129, from O.Fr. duc and L. dux (gen. ducis) "leader, commander," in L.L. "governor of a province," from ducere "to lead," from PIE *deuk- "to lead" (cf. O.E. togian "to pull, drag," O.H.G. ziohan "to pull," O.E. togian "to draw, drag"). Applied in Eng. to "nobleman of the highest rank" probably first c.1350, ousting native earl. Used to translate various European titles (e.g. Rus. knyaz).

dukes --- hands (1874), now mainly in put up your dukes (phrase from 1859), probably not connected to duke. Chapman ["Dictionary of American Slang"] suggests Romany dook "the hand as read in palmistry, one's fate" but Partridge ["Slang To-day and Yesterday"] gives it a plausible, if elaborate, etymology as a contraction of Duke of Yorks, rhyming slang for forks, a Cockney term for "fingers," thus "hands."

dulcet --- 1398, from O.Fr. doucet, dim. of doux "sweet," from L. dulcis, from PIE *dlk-wi-, suffixed form of root *dlk-u- "sweet."

dulcimer --- c.1474, from M.Fr. doulce mer, var. of doulcemele, probably from doulz de mer, said to represent L. dulce "sweet" + melos "song," from Gk. melos "melody."

Dulcinea --- sweetheart, 1748, from the name of Don Quixote's mistress in Cervantes' romance, the name a Sp. fem. derivative of L. dulce "sweet."

dull --- M.E., but rare before 1350, apparently from O.E. dol "dull-witted, foolish," or from M.L.G. dul "slow-witted," both from P.Gmc. *dulaz. Of color from c.1430; of pain or other sensations from 1725. Sense of "boring" first recorded 1590. Dullard first appears 1225 as a surname. Dullsville, slang for "town where nothing happens." attested from 1960.

Duluth --- city in Minnesota, U.S., named for Fr. pioneer explorer Daniel Greysolen, sieur du Luth (1649-1710), "the Robin Hood of Canada," the leader of the coureurs de bois, who passed through in 1678 on a mission into the wilderness.

duly --- 1382, duweliche "rightly, properly," from dewe "due" (see due) + -liche "-ly."

duma --- Rus. national assembly, 1870 (in reference to city councils; the national one was set up in 1905), lit. "thought," from a Gmc. source (cf. Goth. doms "judgment," Eng. doom, deem).

dumb --- O.E. dumb "silent, unable to speak," from PIE *dheubh- "confusion, stupefaction, dizziness." O.E., Goth. (thumb) and O.N. (dumbr) forms meant only "mute, speechless;" in O.H.G. (thumb) it meant both this and "stupid," and in Mod.Ger. this latter became the only sense. Meaning "foolish, ignorant" was occasionally in Eng. from c.1323, but modern use (1823) comes from infl. of Ger. dumm. Applied to silent contrivances, hence dumbwaiter (1749). To dumb down is from 1933.

dumbbell --- weight used for exercise, 1711, originally an apparatus like that used to ring a church bell, but without the bell; used for exercise but sometimes also to practice ringing changes. Figurative sense of "blockhead" first recorded 1920, Amer.Eng.

dumbfound --- 1653, from dumb (q.v.) + (con)found.

dumdum bullet --- 1897, named for Dum-Dum arsenal in Bengal, where the British made them to use against fanatical charges by tribesmen. Outlawed by international declaration, 1899. The place name is lit. "hill, mound, battery," cognate with Pers. damdama.

dummy --- 1598, "mute person," from dumb (q.v.). Extended by 1845 to "figure representing a person." Used in card games (originally whist) since 1736.

dump (v.) --- c.1300, "throw down or fall with force," from a Scand. source (cf. Dan. dumpe, Norw. dumpa "to fall suddenly"). The sense of "unload en masse" is first recorded in Amer.Eng. 1784. The noun "place where refuse is dumped" is attested from 1865, originally of mining operations. Meaning "act of defecating" is from 1942. Dumpy "short and stout" is attested from 1750, but the connection is unclear.

dumpling --- c.1600, Norfolk dial., of uncertain origin, perhaps from L.Ger. or from obsolete n. dump "lump."

dumps --- low spirits, 1523, possibly from Du. domp "haze, mist," from M.Du. damp "vapor" (see damp).

dun (adj.) --- O.E. dunn "dingy brown, dark-colored," perhaps from Celt. (cf. O.Ir. donn "dark"), from PIE *donnos, *dusnos "dark."

dun (v.) --- to insist on payment of debt, c.1626, perhaps related to dunnen "to sound, resound, make a din," or shortened from dunkirk (1602) "privateer," a private vessel licensed to attack enemy ships during wartime, from Dunkirk, French port from which they sailed. Yet another, less likely, theory traces it to a Joe Dun, supposedly a London bailiff famous for catching defaulters.

Duncan --- from Gaelic donn "brown, dark" (see dun (adj.)) + ceann "head."

dunce --- 1577, from earlier Duns disciple "follower of John Duns Scotus" (c. 1265-1308), Scot. scholar of philosophy and theology supposed to have been born at Duns in Berwickshire. By 16c., humanist reaction against medieval theology singled him out as the type of the hairsplitting scholastic. It became a term of reproach to more conservative philosophical opponents c.1527, later extended to any dull-witted student.

dundrearies --- 1862, long, flowing whiskers, like those worn by actor E.A. Sothern (1826-81) while playing Lord Dundreary, witless, indolent chief character in Eng. dramatist Tom Taylor's play "Our American Cousin" (1858).

dune --- 1790, from Fr., M.Du. or M.L.G., all of which had the word in similar form, all perhaps from Gaulish *dunom (thus related to down (n.2) and to town).

dung --- O.E. dung "manure," from PIE *dhengh- "covering" (cf. Lith. dengti "to cover," O.Ir. dingim "I press"); the word recalls the ancient Gmc. custom (reported by Tacitus) of covering underground shelters with manure to keep in warmth in winter. "The whole body of journeymen tailors is divided into two classes, denominated Flints and Dungs: the former work by the day and receive all equal wages; the latter work generally by the piece" [1824].

dungaree --- 1613, from Hindi dungri "coarse calico," from the name of a village, now one of the quarters of Bombay.

dungeon --- c.1300, from O.Fr. donjon "great tower of a castle," from Gallo-Romance *dominionem, from L.L. dominium, from L. dominus "master" (of the castle; see domain). Sense of "castle keep" led to "strong (underground) cell" in Eng. pre-1338.

dunk --- 1919, from Pa. Dutch dunke "to dip," from M.H.G. dunken, from O.H.G. dunkon, thunkon "to soak," from PIE base *teng- "to soak" (see tincture). Basketball sense is first recorded 1937. German-American Anabaptist sect of Dunkers (who baptize with triple immersion) first recorded by that name 1756.

dunno --- colloquial for "(I) don't know," first attested 1842 in Amer.Eng.

duo --- 1590 "song for two voices," via either It. or Fr. from L. duo "two."

duodecimal --- 1714, from L. in duodecimo "(folded) in twelve," in reference to a book in which each page is the twelfth part of the printer's sheet.

duodenum --- 1398, from M.L. duodenum digitorium "space of twelve digits," from L. duodeni "twelve each." Coined by Gerard of Cremona (d.1187), who translated "Canon Avicennae," a loan-transl. of Gk. dodekadaktylon, lit. "twelve fingers long," the intestine part so called by Gk. physician Herophilus (c.353-280 B.C.E.) for its length, about equal to the breadth of twelve fingers.

dupe (n.) --- 1681, from Fr. dupe "deceived person," from M.Fr. duppe (1426), thieves' jargon, probably from phrase de huppe "of the hoopoe," an extravagantly crested and reputedly stupid bird. Bird name is from L. upupa, imitative of its cry. The verb is from 1704.

duplex --- 1817 (adj.) "composed of two parts," from L. duplex, from duo "two" + -plex, from Gk. plax (gen. plakos) "flat surface." The noun sense of "house for two families; two-story apartment" is Amer.Eng., 1922.

duplicate (adj.) --- 1432, from L. duplicatus, pp. of duplicare "to double," from duo "two" + plicare "to fold" see ply (v.)). The noun is first recorded 1532. The verb is attested from 1623.

duplicity --- 1433, from M.Fr. duplicite, from L.L. duplicitatem (nom. duplicitas) "doubleness," in M.L. "ambiguity," from duplex (gen. duplicis) "twofold." The notion is of being "double" in one's conduct.

dura mater --- tough outer membrane surrounding the brain, c.1400, from M.L. dura mater cerebri, lit. "hard mother of the brain," a loan-transl. of Ar. umm al-dimagh as-safiqa, lit. "thick mother of the brain." "In Arabic, the words 'father,' 'mother,' and 'son' are often used to denote relationships between things" [Klein].

durable --- c.1386, from O.Fr. durable, from L. durabilis "lasting, permanent," from durare "to last, harden" (see endure).

duration --- c.1384, from O.Fr. duration, from M.L. durationem (nom. duratio), from L. durare "harden" (see endure). Phrase for the duration (1916) originally refers to British enlistment in World War I.

duress --- c.1320, "harsh or severe treatment," from O.Fr. duresse, from L. duritia "hardness," from durus "hard" (see endure). Sense of "forcible restraint" is from c.1430; that of "coercion" is from 1596.

Durham --- c.1000, Dunholm "city on a hill," a merger of O.E. dun "hill" and Scand. holmr. The change from -n- to -r- is a result of Norman confusion (see Shrewsbury).

during --- c.1385, prp. of obsolete verb duren "to last, endure" (c.1275), from O.Fr. durer, from L. durare "endure." During the day really is "while the day endures," and the usage is a transference into Eng. of a L. ablative absolute.

durum --- species of wheat, 1908, from L. durum, neut. of durus "hard" (see endure). The seeds are tough.

Dushanbe --- capital of Tajikistan, from Tajik dushanbe "Monday" (a compound of du "two" + Shanbe "Saturday," lit. "Sabbath;" thus "two days after Saturday"); so called in ref. to a regular Monday market there. Known from 1929-1961 as Stalinabad.

dusk --- O.E. dox "dark-haired, dark from the absence of light" (cognate with Swed. duska "be misty," L. fuscus "dark," Skt. dhusarah "dust-colored"). Modern form is perhaps via a Northumbrian variant. A color word originally; the sense of "twilight" is recorded from 1622.

dust (n.) --- O.E. dust, from P.Gmc. *dunstaz, from PIE *dheu- with a sense of "smoke, vapor" (cf. Skt. dhu- "shake," L. fumus "smoke"). The verb means both "to sprinkle with dust" (1592) and "to rid of dust" (1568). Sense of "to kill" is U.S. slang first recorded 1938. Dustbowl in reference to a drought-plagued region of the U.S. Midwest first recorded 1936. Dustup "fight" is from 1897; to dust (someone's) coat was ironical for "to beat (someone) soundly" (1690).

Dutch --- c.1380, used first of Germans generally, after c.1600 of Hollanders, from M.Du. duutsch, from O.H.G. duit-isc, corresponding to O.E. þeodisc "belonging to the people," used especially of the common language of Germanic people, from þeod "people, race, nation," from P.Gmc. *theudo "popular, national" (see Teutonic), from PIE base *teuta- "people" (cf. O.Ir. tuoth "people," O.Lith. tauta "people," O.Prus. tauto "country," Oscan touto "community"). As a language name, first recorded as L. theodice, 786 C.E. in correspondence between Charlemagne's court and the Pope, in reference to a synodical conference in Mercia; thus it refers to Old English. First reference to the German language (as opposed to a Germanic one) is two years later. The sense was extended from the language to the people who spoke it (in Ger., Diutisklant, ancestor of Deutschland, was in use by 13c.). Sense narrowed to "of the Netherlands" in 17c., after they became a united, independent state and the focus of English attention and rivalry. In Holland, duitsch is used of the people of Germany. The M.E. sense survives in Pennsylvania Dutch, who immigrated from the Rhineland and Switzerland. Since 1608, Dutch (adj.) has been a "pejorative label pinned by English speakers on almost anything they regard as inferior, irregular, or contrary to 'normal' (i.e., their own) practice" [Rawson]. E.g. Dutch treat (1887), Dutch uncle (1838), etc. -- probably exceeded in such usage only by Indian and Irish -- reflecting first British commercial and military rivalry and later heavy Ger. immigration to U.S. The Dutch themselves spoke English well enough to understand the unsavory connotations of the label and in 1934 Dutch officials were ordered by their government to stop using the term Dutch. Instead, they were to rewrite their sentences so as to employ the official The Netherlands. [Rawson] Dutch elm disease (1927) so called because it was first discovered in Holland (caused by fungus Ceratocystis ulmi).