maelstrom

Meaning

Noun

• A large and violent whirlpool.
• A chaotic or turbulent situation.

Origin

• Originally the name of a giant whirlpool supposed to exist off the west coast of Norway in the Arctic Ocean which was said to destroy all ships that came close to it. Borrowed from early modern Dutch maelstrom (modern Dutch maalstroom), from malen + stroom. The English word is cognate with Danish malstrøm, Swedish malström, German Mahlstrom.
• Popularized via Edgar Allen Poe's short story A Descent into the Maelström (1841).