Rickenbacker

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A surname borne by an American World War I flying ace and racing driver ; a make of electric guitars famous for its bright, jangling tone
2. Used for a famous American World War I air ace and motor racer ; a manufacturer of distinctive electric guitars known for a chiming sound
3. The family name of a celebrated American fighter pilot and automobile racer ; the trademark of an electric guitar company prized for its jangly timbre

Etymology: Rickenbacker is a surname, and in most uses it names one man: Edward Vernon Rickenbacker, born in Columbus, Ohio, in 1890 to German-speaking Swiss immigrant parents. During the First World War he became the top American fighter ace, with 26 confirmed aerial victories, and he was later awarded the Medal of Honor. After the war he ran Eastern Air Lines for years. In 1942 his B-17 ditched in the Pacific, and he and his crew spent 24 days adrift on rafts before being rescued. The name is a German-Swiss surname, and it has since been attached to other things, most famously the Rickenbacker electric guitar company, which was founded in California in the early 1930s. The guitar's name is a borrowed surname, not a word formed from English or Latin roots, so its history is that of a family name carried from one context to another.