Etymologie, Etimología, Étymologie, Etimologia, Etymology, (griech.) etymología, (lat.) etymologia, (esper.) etimologio
UK Vereinigtes Königreich Großbritannien und Nordirland, Reino Unido de Gran Bretaña e Irlanda del Norte, Royaume-Uni de Grande-Bretagne et d'Irlande du Nord, Regno Unito di Gran Bretagna e Irlanda del Nord, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, (esper.) Britujo
Rotwelsch, Jerga del Hampa, Argot du milieu, Gergo dei Vagabondi, Thieves' Latin, (esper.) ruga anariko

tip (W3)

A Brief History of Tipping

By Akila McConnell

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"tip" (v.2) "give a small present of money to", c. 1600, originally "to give", "to hand", "to pass", thieves' cant, perhaps from "tip" (v.3) "to tap". The meaning "give a gratuity to" is first attested 1706. The noun in this sense is from 1755; the noun meaning "piece of confidential information" is from 1845; and the verb in the sense "give private information to" is from 1883.

The popularity of the tale of the word's supposed origin as an acronym in mid-18th century English taverns seems to be no older than Frederick W. Hackwood's 1909 book "Inns, Ales and Drinking Customs of Old England", where it was said to stand for "To insure promptitude" (in the form "to insure promptness" the anecdote is told from 1946). A reviewer of the book in the "Athenaeum" of Oct. 2, 1909, wrote, "We deprecate the careless repetition of popular etymologies such as the notion that "tip" originated from an abbreviated inscription on a box placed on the sideboard in old coaching-inns, the full meaning of which was "To Insure Promptitude." Also see here.
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August 2 / inside restaurants

Service 101: A Brief History of Tipping

October 16, 2015 6:49 pm

The demeaning custom of tipping is outdated

Forcing staff to depend upon their patrons’ generosity is unfair

“To Insure Promptitude”, printed upon a bowl in an 18th-century coffeehouse, ...
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To Insure Promptitude - The History of Tipping

tip

tip (verb) | tip (noun)

How did the practice of tipping the waiter/waitress in a restaurant start ?

What is the history of this practice of tipping ?

The History of Tipping

July 1, 2013 by Audrey

The Case Against Tipping
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The etymology of "tipping" is just as widely misunderstood as the practice itself. It's commonly accepted that the origin of "tipping" or "tip" comes from the British (who eschew tipping more than we do) in the early 19th century, who used to hang signs in pubs with the word "TIP" as an acronym of "To Insure Promptitude", when in fact, it actually first appeared as a verb in George Farquhar's 1707 The Beaux' Stratagem after being used in criminal circles as a word meant to imply the unnecessary and gratuitous gifting of something somewhat taboo, like a joke, or a sure bet, or illicit money exchanges. That feeling of being robbed by having to tip for bad service? Now you know: the word tipping came from criminals. ...
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Does Tipping “Insure Promptitude”?

May 29, 2011

In defense of tipping

Why some restaurants are doing away with tipping

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England

Die Herkunft des Wortes "tip" ist unklar. Die oft zitierte Abkürzung aus "to insure promptness"/"to improve performance" wird von Sprachforschern nicht als Ursprung des Wortes angesehen, da Akronyme in der englischen Sprache erst nach 1920 üblich wurden. Vielmehr stamme das Wort aus der Gangstersprache des 17. Jahrhunderts, wo "to tip" etwa "geben", "weitergeben", "weiterleiten" bedeutet habe. Eine Zuwendung ("tip") geben ist erstmals im Theaterstück "The Beaux Stratagem" von George Farquhar attestiert, das am 8. März 1707 uraufgeführt wurde. Als Substantiv erschien es erstmals 1755. Da "tipping" auch aus "tipple" für "Zechen" abgeleitet sein könnte, liegt es nahe, dass der Begriff wohl in Englands Kneipen des 17. Jahrhunderts entstanden sein kann, als Gäste zur Beschleunigung der Getränkelieferung ("to improve promptitude") den Bedienungskräften zusätzliches Geld übergaben. Die Geschichte mit Edward Lloyd, der in London 1688 ein Kaffeehaus eröffnete und dort eine Blechdose mit der Aufschrift "to insure promptness" aufstellte, hält sich hartnäckig; immerhin wurde das Kaffeehaus 1771 zum Zentrum der "Society of Lloyd’s of London" und legitimierte als Versicherungsunternehmen damit das Wort "insure".
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Etymology and history

The first usage of the term "tip" in the sense of "giving a gratuity" dates back to 1706.

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word "tip" originated as a slang term, and its etymology is unclear. According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the meaning "give a small present of money" began around 1600, and the meaning "give a gratuity to" is first attested in 1706. The noun in this sense is from 1755. The term in the sense of "to give a gratuity" first appeared in the 18th century. It derived from an earlier sense of "tip", meaning "to give"; "to hand", "to pass", which originated in the rogues' cant in the 17th century.

This sense may have derived from the 16th-century tip meaning "to strike or hit smartly but lightly" (which may have derived from the Low German "tippen", "to tap") but this derivation is "very uncertain". The word "tip" was first used as a verb in 1707 in George Farquhar's play "The Beaux' Stratagem". Farquhar used the term after it had been "...used in criminal circles as a word meant to imply the unnecessary and gratuitous gifting of something somewhat taboo, like a joke, or a sure bet, or illicit money exchanges."

The practice of tipping began in Tudor England. "By the 17th century, it was expected that overnight guests to private homes would provide sums of money, known as vails, to the host’s servants. Soon afterwards, customers began tipping in London coffeehouses and other commercial establishments."

The etymology for the synonym for tipping, "gratuity", dates back either to the 1520s, from "graciousness", from the French gratuité (14th century) or directly from Medieval Latin gratuitas, "free gift", probably from earlier Latin gratuitus, "free, freely given" . The meaning "money given for favor or services" is first attested in the 1530s.

In some languages, the term translates to "drink money" or similar: for example "pourboire" in French, "Trinkgeld" in German, and "drikkepenge" in Danish. This comes from a custom of inviting a servant to drink a glass in honour of the guest, and paying for it, in order for the guests to show generosity among each other. The term bibalia in Latin was recorded in 1372.
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Tip
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Now, as to "tip", those bozos are not even close. "Tip" doesn't stand for anything. It probably comes from the lingo of thieves in the 1600's, where "to tip" meant "to give or to lend a small amount of money or goods". Back then, "tipping" also meant "touching lightly", as in tapping someone on the shoulder to get their attention, or possibly "touching" them with a request for a small amount of money.

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The idea that it comes from an acronym for "to insure promptness" is just plain wrong.

Tip

Q: From Claire McBain, Thomas Lusk, Donna Guindon, and others: What is the origin of the word tip as in the tip you would give a waitress at a restaurant?
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tip