boll 的詞源

中古英語 bolle，源自古英語 bolla “碗，杯，壺，盛液體的圓形容器”，與13世紀合併，與中古荷蘭語 bolle “圓形物體”都來自原始日耳曼語 *bul-, 源自 PIE 詞根 *bhel-（2）“吹氣，膨脹”。在意義上受到拉丁語 bulla “泡沫，球”的影響（見 bull（n.2））。

該詞義於1500年左右擴展爲“亞麻或棉花的圓形種子莢”。Boll weevil，這種害蟲會破壞棉花莢，自1895年起被美國英語稱爲這個名字。

In south Texas, among Spanish-speaking people, the insect is generally known as the 'picudo,' a descriptive name which refers to the snout or beak of the insect. English-speaking planters generally referred to the insect at first as 'the sharpshooter,' a term which for many years has been applied to any insect which causes through its punctures the shedding of the squares or the rotting of the bolls. As there are several native insects that are commonly called sharpshooters and which, though injurious, are by no means to be compared with this insect, it becomes necessary to discourage in every way the use of the word sharpshooter as applied to this weevil. The adoption of the term 'Mexican cotton-boll weevil' for the new pest is recommended. [New Mexico College of Agriculture and the Mechanic Arts Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin No. 19, April 1896]

在德克薩斯州南部，西班牙語區的人們通常稱這種昆蟲爲“picudo”，這是一個描述性的名稱，指的是昆蟲的吻或喙。英語種植者最初通常將這種昆蟲稱爲“sharpshooter”，這個術語多年來一直用於任何通過其刺孔引起方塊脫落或莢腐爛的昆蟲。由於有幾種本地昆蟲通常被稱爲 sharpshooters，雖然有害但絕不可與這種昆蟲相比，因此有必要以各種方式阻止將 sharpshooter 一詞用於這種象鼻蟲。建議採用“墨西哥棉鈴象”這個新害蟲的術語。[新墨西哥農業與機械工藝學院農業實驗站公報第19號，1896年4月]

昆蟲學干預詞源學的案例。