The origin of words: DUB

Dub, meaning ‘to give a name to someone or something,’ dates back to the mid-11th century. The late Old English verb dubbian (later dubben in Middle English) originally meant ‘to make someone a knight by striking them with a sword,’ and probably came into English from the Anglo-French dubber, douber or dobber, from the Old French aduber (to equip with arms or adorn). Its origin before then is uncertain, but most linguists believe it was Germanic in origin, and some point to the Old Norse dubba (to dub a knight), the Old Low Franconian dubban (to strike or beat) or the Old Low German dubben (to trust, poke or strike) as proof. The meaning ‘to give a name’ dates back to the late 16th century, and started as a figurative use of the original sense. Dub, meaning ‘to poke or thrust,’ has the same origin as the prior meaning, but was not really used in English until the early 15th century. The golf meaning, used mostly in the US, dates back to the early 20th century. Dub, meaning drumbeat, is a figurative play on this sense, and the origin of the music style. The film meaning is completely unrelated; it is a shortened form of the word double. Finally, the noun dub, meaning ‘an awkward or unskillful person,’ dates back to the late 19th century, and is probably of expressive origin (along with fluband flubdub, with the same meaning).