Watch Your Staup!
Staupings: The Hoof Marks of Cattle or Horses in Muddy Areas
A fine old word ripe for inviting back into use, literally and figuratively.
According to the OED, there was once a word staup — thought to have originated in some northern parts (probably Scotland) as an awkward variation of the word step — which had a few meanings. One was to describe a way of walking with high steps and/or to tread heavily upon the ground. Others used it to describe long, awkward steps. And some used it figuratively to describe tall, awkward people.
John Jamieson’s Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language (1825) has some nice quotes, worth pasting here:
How’s that for ye, ye muckle lang staup?!
In any case, the original tread heavily definition (dating back at least to the late 1700s) seems to have influenced the word staupings, as that word generally was used to describe the tracks left behind by heavy animals (esp. cows or horses) after they’d walk through a muddy mire.
And, really, that’s why I selected this word today. For one, it’s simply an interesting word to know. And, though its…
