A 15-year investigation into the cocktail's origin and etymology reveals a history muddled by competing theories and sparse evidence. The earliest documented references date to the early 1800s, including an 1806 definition and mentions in works by James Fenimore Cooper and Washington Irving, though the drink's true inventor and the etymology of its name remain elusive.
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Ancient Greek contains approximately 1,000 words of unknown origin that cannot be traced to Indo-European or other regional languages, including names like Achilles, Odysseus, and Athens, as well as common words like labyrinth and olive. Linguists believe these words were borrowed from Paleo-European languages spoken by Early European Farmers who preceded Indo-European peoples in the Mediterranean region. As Greek speakers encountered unfamiliar flora, fauna, and geography, they adopted local terminology rather than inventing new words.