Lap
Old English læppa, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch lap, German Lappen ‘piece of cloth’. The word originally denoted a fold or flap of a garment (compare with lapel), later specifically one that could be used as a pocket or pouch, or the front of a skirt when held up to carry something (Middle English), hence the area between the waist and knees as a place where a child could be nursed or an object held.
wiktionary
From Middle English lappe, from Old English læppa(“skirt or flap of a garment”), from Proto-Germanic *lappô(“cloth; rag”), of uncertain origin, possibly Proto-Indo-European *leb-(“to hang loosely”). [1] [2] Cognate with Dutch lap(“cloth; rag”), German Lappen(“cloth; lobe; flap”), Icelandic leppur(“rag; patch”).
From Middle English lappen(“to fold, wrap”) from earlier wlappen(“to fold, wrap”), from Old English *wlappan, *wlæppan, *wlappian(“to wrap”), from Proto-Germanic *wlapp-, *wrapp-(“to wrap, fold, roll up, turn”), from Proto-Indo-European *werb-(“to bend, turn”). Cognate with Middle Dutch lappen(“to wrap up, embrace”), dialectal Danish vravle(“to wind”), Old Italian goluppare(“to wrap, fold up”) (from Germanic). Doublet of wrap. Also related to envelop, develop.
The sense of "to get a lap ahead (of someone) on a track" is from 1847, on notion of "overlapping." The noun meaning "a turn around a track" (1861) is from this sense.
From Middle English lappen, from Old English lapian, from Proto-Germanic *lapōną, *lapjaną(“to lick; lap”), from imitative Proto-Indo-European *leh₂b-(“to lap, lick”); akin to Old High German laffen(“to lick”), Old Norse lepja, Danish labe, Old Saxon lepil, German Löffel(“spoon”). Cognate with Latin lambere(“lick”). French lamper is a loanword from German. Compare Danish leffe, dialect German läffeln.
lap (plural laps)
etymonline
lap (n.1)
Old English læppa (plural læppan) "skirt or flap of a garment," from Proto-Germanic *lapp- (source also of Old Frisian lappa, Old Saxon lappo, Middle Dutch lappe, Dutch lap, Old High German lappa, German Lappen "rag, shred," Old Norse leppr "patch, rag"), of uncertain origin.
Sense of "lower front part of a shirt or skirt" led to that of "upper legs of seated person" (c. 1300). Used figuratively ("bosom, breast, place where someone or something is held and cherished") from late 14c., as in lap of luxury (which is first recorded 1802). To drop or dump something in someone's lap "shift a burden" is from 1962. From 15c.-17c. the word (often in plural) was a euphemism for "female pudendum," but this is not the source of lap dance, which is first recorded 1993.
To lap dance, you undress, sit your client down, order him to stay still and fully clothed, then hover over him, making a motion that you have perfected by watching Mister Softee ice cream dispensers. [Anthony Lane, review of "Showgirls," New Yorker, Oct. 16, 1995]
Lap-clap was old slang for "an act of coition" (c. 1600), in warning expressions to youth often paired with lip-clip "a kiss." Also compare slang Lapland "the society of women."
lap (v.1)
"lick up (liquid), take into the mouth with the tongue," from Old English lapian "to lap up, drink," from Proto-Germanic *lapojan (source also of Old High German laffen "to lick," Old Saxon lepil, Dutch lepel, German Löffel "spoon"), from PIE imitative base *lab- (source also of Greek laptein "to sip, lick," Latin lambere "to lick"), indicative of licking, lapping, smacking lips.
Of water, "splash gently, flow against" first recorded 1823, based on similarity of sound. Figurative use of lap (something) up "receive it eagerly" is by 1890. Related: Lapped; lapping. The noun meaning "liquid food; weak beverage" is from 1560s.
lap (v.2)
early 14c., "to surround (something with something else)," from lap (n.1). Figurative use, "to envelop (in love, sin, desire, etc.)" is from mid-14c. Meaning "lay one part over another, lay in such a way as to cover part of something underneath" is from c. 1600. The sense of "to get a lap ahead (of a competitor) on a track" is from 1847, on notion of "overlapping" (see lap (n.2)). Related: Lapped; lapping.
lap (n.2)
1670s, "something coiled or wrapped up," from lap (v.2). Meaning "part of one thing that lies on and covers another" is from 1800. Meaning "a turn around a track" in a distance race is from 1861. Related: laps.
