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hysteria: hysteria: [19] Greek hustérā meant ‘womb’ (it is related to Latin uterus ‘womb’). The adjective derived from it was husterikós ‘suffering in the womb’. This passed into Latin as hystericus, which formed the basis of the modern Latin noun hysteria, a term coined in the 19th century for a neurotic condition supposedly peculiar to women (in popular parlance it was called ‘the vapours’). Hysterectomy ‘surgical removal of the womb’ dates from the late 19th century.
=> uterus
shyster: shyster: [19] Shyster ‘unscrupulous lawyer’ originated in the USA in the 1840s. It is generally supposed to come from the name of one Scheuster, a New York lawyer of that era who was constantly being rebuked by judges for his sharp practices. An alternative explanation, however, is that it represents an alteration of German scheisser, literally ‘shitter’.
hysterectomy (n.): 1886, coined in English from Greek hystera "womb" (see uterus) + -ectomy.
hysteresis (n.): 1805, from Greek hysteresis "a coming short, a deficiency."
hysteria (n.): 1801, coined in medical Latin as an abstract noun from hysteric (see hysterical) + abstract noun ending -ia.
hysteric (adj.): 1650s, from Latin hystericus, from Greek hysterikos âbelonging to the wombâ (see hysterical). As a noun from 1751.
hysterical (adj.): 1610s, from Latin hystericus "of the womb," from Greek hysterikos "of the womb, suffering in the womb," from hystera "womb" (see uterus). Originally defined as a neurotic condition peculiar to women and thought to be caused by a dysfunction of the uterus. Meaning "very funny" (by 1939) is from the notion of uncontrollable fits of laughter. Related: Hysterically.
hysterics (n.): 1727, from hysterical. Sometimes in 19c. jocularly folk-etymologized as high-strikes (1838).
hysteron proteron: 1560s, from Late Latin, from Greek, literally "the latter (put as) the former." A figure of speech in which what should come last is put first, from hysteron, neuter of hysteros "latter, second, after" (from PIE *ud-tero-, from root *ud- "up, out;" see out) + proteron, neuter of proteros "before, former," from PIE *pro-, from root *per- (1) "forward, through" (see per).
shyster (n.): "unscrupulous lawyer," 1843, U.S. slang, probably altered from German Scheisser "incompetent worthless person," from Scheisse "shit" (n.), from Old High German skizzan "to defecate" (see shit (v.)).