troduced from foreign parts. Inquirers in search of a surer footing were led to seek for the key of the riddle in linguistic disquisitions. It is a remarkable circumstance, that at the very first sight all the European names of hop show a close etymological affinity, and that the names of humulus, chmiel, horblon, hop, hoppe, hoppen, derive from a common source. The question, which appellations are older, and where their origin might be found, was solved in various ways.
A. R. Perger takes the word humulus (mediæval Latin humela), for a latinized German name. Others derived it from humlis.
De Candolle, on the other hand, seems not to recognize the affinity of the German with the French, Italian and Slav names.
Weigand considers the Low German hopps, hopp, the primitive form, and derives it from the Latin hupa. The latter may be traced to Dutch and English.
The reason, however, given for the derivation of hoppe from hoppen, hŭppen (to skip, to jump), to wit, that the hop climbs up poles, is decidedly weak, as creeping up with the help of tendrils cannot well be called jumping, inasmuch as that action has a distinct name: Ranke (tendril), ranken (climb, creep up).
Nevertheless, it must be acknowledged that the appellation of hoppe is very ancient, as it is met with in the 9th century, and is etymologically related to the barbaric hubalus, which latter evidently is the father of the French houblon, horbelon and hubillon. The supporters of the hypothesis that Germany is the cradle of the European names of the hop, have derived the Latin humlo, humelo, humulo, humolo, humela, homelus, as well as the Finnish humala, hummal, and the Slav chmiel, from hoppe or hupa.
Others maintain with Du Cange that hupa, hoppe have been produced by Pliny's form of lupus with the loss of the l; whence the more modern forms are said to be derived.
Yet others compare the names of hops with the Greek χύπιω (to bend, to stoop); Grimm puts them in relation with the Latin cubare (to lie); de Candolle in his Geography of Botany calls our attention to the affinity of the Slav names with the Greek χλῆμα (sprig, graft, vine).
