2872: Panzer – Older Than You Think Nov 1, 2024

One of the most famous words to have entered English from Axis languages, along with ‘blitz’ and ‘honcho’ is ‘panzer’ referring to the German tanks. While some tank names are new, or named after other people, like the Abrams, named after General Creighton Williams Abrams, Jr., but ‘panzer’ is also found around medieval texts. There, the term referred to chainmail, or other sorts of overlapping armor. That itself comes from Latin ‘pantex’ ultimately referring to a paunch.