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Origin and history of bankrupt

bankrupt(adj.)

"in the state of one unable to pay just debts or meet obligations," 1560s, from Italian banca rotta, literally "a broken bench," from banca "moneylender's shop," literally "bench" (see bank (n.1)) + rotta "broken, defeated, interrupted" from (and in English remodeled on) Latin rupta, fem. past participle of rumpere "to break" (see rupture (n.)). Said to have been so called from an old custom of breaking the bench of bankrupts, but the allusion probably is figurative. The modern figurative (non-financial) sense in English is from 1580s. As a noun, "insolvent person," from 1530s.

bankrupt(v.)

"make insolvent," 1550s, from bankrupt (adj.). Related: Bankrupted; bankrupting.

Entries linking to bankrupt

"financial institution," late 15c., originally "money-dealer's counter or shop," from Old Italian banca and also from French banque (itself from the Italian word), both meaning "table," from a Germanic source (such as Old High German bank "bench, moneylender's table"), from Proto-Germanic *bankiz- "shelf," *bankon- (see bank (n.2)). The etymological notion is of the moneylender's exchange table.

As "institution for receiving and lending money" from 1620s. In games of chance, "the sum of money held by the proprietor or one who plays against the rest," by 1720. Bank holiday is from 1871, though the tradition is as old as the Bank of England. To cry all the way to the bank was coined 1956 by U.S. pianist Liberace, after a Madison Square Garden concert that was panned by critics but packed with patrons.

late 14c., in medicine, "act of bursting or breaking," in reference to a vessel, etc. of the body, from Old French rupture and directly from Latin ruptura "the breaking (of a vein), fracture (of an arm or leg)," from past-participle stem of rumpere "to break" (from PIE root *runp- "to break;" see corrupt (adj.)).

Specifically as "abdominal hernia" from early 15c. The sense of "breach of friendly relations or concord" is by 1580s; the general sense of "act or fact of breaking or bursting" is by 1640s. Rupturewort (1590s) was held to be efficacious in treating hernias, etc.

1700, "the breaking up of a business due to its inability to pay obligations," from bankrupt, "probably on the analogy of insolvency, but with -t erroneously retained in spelling, instead of being merged in the suffix ...." [OED]. Figurative use is attested from 1761. Earlier words for it (late 16c.-17c.) were bankrupting, bankruption, bankrupture, bankruptship.

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    Trends of bankrupt

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

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