Mammets

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A term describing small puppets or dolls used in performances or for children's play
2. a regional dialect term referring to a baby or young child
3. an affectionate word for a person who is a source of amusement or a playful trickster

Etymology: "Mammets" is the plural of "mammet," and the singular once named an idol. In Middle English, "mawmet" meant a false god or image worshipped by non-Christians, and the Anglo-Norman "maumet" carried the same sense. The name traces back to the Prophet Muhammad: Andalusian Arabic "Maḥummad" and standard Arabic "muḥammad" were the sources, and medieval Christian writers, who wrongly regarded Muslims as idolaters, turned the Prophet's name into a term for a heathen image. "Mammet" is a doublet of "Muhammad" and "Mahound," the latter a medieval name for the devil in Christian polemic. Over the centuries the sense drifted from pagan idol to puppet or doll, and then to a term of affection. The "idol" meaning is what gives the word its bite, since the same contempt for the Prophet's name stood behind the image it named. The modern playful pet name is a long way from that origin.

Synonyms: puppet, dummy, figure