For thousands of years, humans have been making and using many different kinds of containers intended to hold liquids such as water, beer, wine, and so on. Briefly described below are the etymologies of some of the words for containers.
Bottle
The word bottle came into English in the mid-fourteenth century. It came from the Old French boteille which is from the Vulgar Latin butticula, which is the diminutive of the Late Latin buttis meaning "a cask." According to some sources, the Late Latin buttis may have come from Greek.
A bottle, by the way, is characterized by having a relatively narrow neck that can be closed. Most frequently it is used for liquids.
Bottles can be used for holding alcoholic beverages and in the seventeenth century, the term bottle also came to be used for liquor.
Jar
Sometime in the early fifteenth century, the word jar came into English with the meaning of a “cylindrical vessel.” Its origins appear to be from the Middle French jarre indicating a liquid measure smaller than a barrel which comes from the Provençal jarra which came from the Arabic word jarrah meaning “earthen water vessel.”
The jar differs from the bottle by having a large opening that can be closed.
In 1858, John Latin Mason of New York patented a new kind of jar which became known as the Mason Jar. This jar is made from molded glass which has screw threads which allow a metal ring or band to be screwed down, holding a disc-shaped lid against the rim of the jar. A hermetic seal to the jar is created with a rubber ring on the underside of the lid. This jar was invented to preserve food in home canning.
Another specialty jar is the Leyden Jar which is used for accumulating and storing static electricity. The jar is named for the Dutch city of Leyden where it was first described by physicist Pieter van Musschenbroek in 1746.
Jug
In the late fifteenth century, the word jug, meaning “a deep vessel for carrying liquids,” appeared in English. The origin of this word is unknown, but may have appeared earlier as jugge and jubbe.
In the mid-sixteenth century, jug was used in referring to “a low woman, a maidservant.” This use of jug, however, may have come from the alteration of a common personal name, perhaps Joan or Judith.
Mug
In the 1560s, the word mug, meaning “a drinking vessel,” came into English from an unknown origin. Some linguists feel that mug may have come from the Scandinavian languages. They note the similarities with the Swedish mugg meaning “mug, jug” and the Norwegian mugge meaning “pitcher, open can for warm drinks.”
Crock
The English word crock is from the Old English crocc or crocca meaning “pot, vessel” which is from the Proto-Germanic *krogu meaning “pot, vessel.”
A crock is made from coarse earthenware. In the days before indoor plumbing was popular, one type of crock was the chamberpot which held urine and feces. Thus, in the nineteenth century, crock was also used to mean something worthless.
Demijohn
In the late seventeenth century, the French were using the word damejeanne (“Lady Jane”) for a large, globular, wicker-wrapped bottle whose shape suggested a stout woman. In 1769, damejeanne became the English demijohn.
Demijohn looks like its etymology should be traced to the prefix demi- plus the root john. Demi, of course, means half, and thus it looks like demijohn should be “half a john.” John, is a man’s name which can be used to refer to a toilet or to a prostitute’s customer. Approaching the etymology of demijohn in this fashion can be confusing. This serves as a lesson in etymology which is about history as well as the components of words.
Pitcher
The word pitcher, meaning “an earthen jug,” was appropriated about 1200 from the Old French pichier which came from the Medieval Latin bicarium which most likely stemmed from the Greek bikos meaning “earthen vessel.”
Carafe
The word carafe was first recorded in English in 1786 and comes from the French carafe which comes from the Italian caraffa. The word’s origins may be found in the Arabic gharraf meaning “drinking cup” and the Persian qarabah meaning “a large flagon.”
Flagon
In the mid-fifteenth century, the word flagon entered the English lexicon with the meaning of “a large bottle for wine or liquor.” The origins of flagon are in the Middle French flacon and the Old French flascon meaning a “small bottle or flask.”
Flask
English acquired the word flask in the mid-fourteenth century. There are some sources that feel that flask comes from the Medieval Latin flasco meaning “container, bottle” which is from the Late Latin flasconem meaning “bottle.” On the other hand, flask may have come from the Old English flasce meaning “flask, bottle” which suggests a Germanic origin, possibly from the Proto-Germanic base *fleh-. To confuse the issue, there are also some who suggest that flask is Celtic in origin.
Thermos
Like all living languages, English adopts, invents, and creates new words to describe new things and ideas. One of the problems that humans faced was how to keep beverages hot or cold in their containers. Sir James Dewar built the first thermos in 1892 and patented it in 1904. In order to name this new invention, a contest was held and thermos, from the Greek thermos meaning “hot” was the winner. Thermos was registered as a trademark in Britain in 1907 and later became commonly used in English.
Decanter
The word decanter, meaning a vessel for decanting liquors, was first recorded in English in 1715. Our clue to the etymology of this word is in the noun decant which was originally an alchemical term referring to the process of pouring off the clear liquid from a solution by gently tipping the vessel. While decant came into English from the French décanter which probably originated from the Medieval Latin decanthare meaning “to pour from the edge of a vessel” which was formed from the prefix de- meaning “from” plus canthus meaning “corner, lip of a jug.”