lobscouse

Etymology

Possibly from Yorkshire dialect lob (“boil”, literally “bubbling up”) + scouse, a word of unknown origin. Compare lapskaus, Dutch lapskous, Norwegian Bokmål lapskaus, German Labskaus, Danish skipperlabskovs/labskovs; also English loblolly.

Why this word is great

LOBSCOUSE — [Noun] A hearty sailor’s stew of meat, vegetables, and ship biscuit, thickened into a rib-sticking mass. Its etymology bubbles up from Yorkshire dialect lob ("to boil," literally "bubbling up") and the enigmatic scouse, a word of unknown origin; compare lapskaus, Dutch lapskous, Norwegian Bokmål lapskaus, German Labskaus, Danish skipperlabskovs/labskovs. Unlike "loblolly" (a porridge-like slop, gluey with oatmeal) or "lapskaus" (a softer, biscuit-less cousin), lobscouse is the workhorse of maritime survival, built to endure. It is the groan of a wooden hull in heavy weather, the stale crunch of weevil-riddled hardtack softening in broth, the communal pot steaming in the galley’s dim light—a meal that tastes of endurance, of making do when the world is salt and sway.

noun

  1. A dish of meat stewed with vegetables and ship biscuit.“[A] dish of hard fish swimming in oil appeared at each end, the sides being furnished with a mess of that savoury composition known by the name of lob's course […].”