Английский Этимологический словарь - pound (1)

- "measure of weight," O.E. pund, from W.Gmc. stem *punda- "pound" (measure of weight), early borrowing from L. pondo "pound," originally in libra pondo "a pound by weight," from pondo (adv.) "by weight," ablative of *pondos "weight." Meaning "unit of money" was in O.E., originally "pound of silver." At first "12 ounces;" meaning "16 ounces" was established before 1377. Pound cake (1841) so called because it has a pound, more or less, of each ingredient. Pound of flesh is from "Merchant of Venice" iv.1. The abbreviations lb., Ј are from libra, and reflect the medieval custom of keeping accounts in Latin.