| 释义 |
‖ topī1, topee East Ind.|ˈtəʊpɪ, older təʊˈpiː|
[a. Hindī ṭopī hat; prob. the word mentioned in the Vocab. of Linguagem de Calicut in the Roteiro de Vasco da Gama 1497, ‘barrete: tupy’, related to Hindī ‘top helmet or hat’ (Yule). (But some think the latter is an adaptation of Pg. topo top.)]
Originally applied by Indian natives to the European hat; now specialized in Anglo-Indian, as a name for the sola topī, sola hat or helmet: see sola n.
1835Court Mag. VI. 207/2 The white sombrero solah topee, was supplanted by a raking cocked hat. 1845–Sola topi [see sola n. (b)]. 1849E. B. Eastwick Dry Leaves 2 And there is need of many a fold of twisted muslin round the white topi to keep off his [the sun's] importunacy. 1872‘Aliph Cheem’ Lays of Ind (1876) 41 The boat came back in a little space, With Grant and the topee blue. 1889Blackw. Mag. Aug. 245 You wear a pith topee. 1904Daily Record & Mail 1 Jan. 4 The white topee, green-lined, is a favourite hat.
Comb.1880A. M. Ruthquist in Life xi. (1893) 201 A rather lengthy lesson in topee-making was given.
Hence ‖ topī-, topee-wallah |ˌtəʊpɪˈwɒlə, təʊpiːˈwɑːlɑː|, also -wala [a. Hindī ṭopīwālā, one who wears a hat, f. topī + wallah fellow], the Indian name for a European, because he wears a hat.
The term is used ‘by the natives with a shade of disparagement’, while ‘all persons claiming European blood’ take pride ‘in wearing a hat’ (Yule s.v. topaz). R. Drummond says that in his time (before 1808), Topeewala and Puggrywala were used in Gujarat and the Mahratta country for ‘European’ and ‘Native’. So ‘the author of the Persian Life of Hydur Naik calls Europeans Kalāh-posh hat-wearers’ (Ibid. s.v.).
1826Hockley Pandurang Hari vi. I. 88 It was now evident we should have to encounter the Topee Wallas. 1834A. Prinsep Baboo I. viii. 126 The Topee-walas are within matchlock shot of this grove! 1864Trevelyan Compet. Wallah (1866) 44 The idea got about that they were to be forcibly turned into topee-wallahs, hat-fellows, a synonym for the hated name of Frank or Christian. |