shaddock

Meaning

Noun

• Synonym of pomelo, in all its senses including grapefruit.

Origin

• A clipping of earlier shaddock-tree. Popularly claimed to supposedly be from a "Captain Shaddock" of the British East India Company who introduced its seeds to Barbados from Southeast Asia. However, there are various historical problems concerning this lore, mainly pertaining to records of the purported seaman's surname; for one thorough review see this article by . Compare etymology of shrapnel, veritably from a British officer's surname.
• The surname itself is of Old English origin; probably from or related to Chaddock at Lancashire, an estate in the township of Tyldesley, in the parish of Leigh (see ). The second particle may be descent from the diminutive suffix -ock.