Aberdeen. From the Celtic aber, estuary, confluence; the town at the mouth of the Dee.
Abernethy Biscuits. From the name of the baker who introduced them. Their connection with Dr Abernethy was repudiated by the great physician himself.
Aberystwith. The town at the mouth of the Ystwith.
Abigail. The generic name for a waiting-maid, in allusion to the handmaid who introduced herself to David (1 Sam. xxv. 23). Its popularity during the second half of the seventeenth century may be accounted for by the fact that the maiden name of Mrs Masham, the waiting-woman of Queen Anne, was Abigail Hill.
Abingdon. A corruption of Abbendon, the town of abbeys, being a place famed for religious houses far back in Anglo-Saxon days.
Abingdon Street. From the ancient town residence of the Earls of Abingdon.
Abney Park. From Abney House, now a Conservative Club, the residence of Sir Thomas Abney, Lord Mayor of London. Dr Isaac Watts passed away at Abney House in 1748.
Abode of Love. See “[Agapemonites].”
Abolitionists. The party sworn to the total and immediate abolition of slavery in the United States.
Above Board. Open, not playing an underhanded game. The owners of the gaming-tables on a race-course unsuspectedly regulated the issue of the spinning hand on the board by means of a treadle.