Brownie
The origin and history of Brownie.
Etymology
The Girl Scout sense comes from an 1870 children's story about helpful, elf-like creatures called brownies; the cake sense arose separately in America around 1900, most likely just describing its brown colour.
Class of 1870
Brownie first entered the language around 1870. Other words from the same year:
See the full Class of 1870 →