95 "golf" (Word origins - alt.usage.english)
Description
This article is from the alt.usage.english FAQ, by Mark Israel misrael@scripps.edu with numerous contributions by others.
95 "golf" (Word origins - alt.usage.english)
does not stand for "Gentlemen Only, Ladies Forbidden". It is a
Scots word mentioned in 1457 in reference to the game. Possible
cognates are Scots "gowf"="to strike", Dutch "kolf"="club for
striking balls", Swedish "kolf"="butt-end", and Old Icelandic
"kolfr"="bolt". The postulated Proto-Germanic root is *"kulb-".
The English word "club" comes from the possibly related
Proto-Germanic *"klumbon"="heavy stick".
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