Etymology Map
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Scuba

2 stages from American English to English.

Today it means an aqualung; diving with one

Where does the word "scuba" come from? It comes from American English SCUBA, adopted directly into English (1950s).

1
Stage 1 of 2
SCUBA
American English · 1952
"diver's breathing apparatus"
Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus, coined in 1952 by Christian Lambertsen, whose rebreather had equipped US combat swimmers in World War II
2
Stage 2 of 2
scuba
English · 1950s
"underwater breathing gear"
soon lower-cased and used for Jacques Cousteau and Émile Gagnan's Aqua-Lung, the open-circuit gear they perfected in 1943
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Scuba’s story begins in American English: SCUBA meant “diver's breathing apparatus.” Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus, coined in 1952 by Christian Lambertsen, whose rebreather had equipped US combat swimmers in World War II. It reached English by 1950s as scuba. Soon lower-cased and used for Jacques Cousteau and Émile Gagnan's Aqua-Lung, the open-circuit gear they perfected in 1943. Today, scuba means an aqualung; diving with one.