Tawpie, “a foolish young person,” comprises tawp-, an element of Scandinavian origin, and -ie, a diminutive suffix also found in dearie and sweetie. Tawp- is likely related to Danish tåbe, Norwegian tåpe, and Swedish tåp, all meaning “simpleton, fool,” from Old Norse. Because of the Vikings’ colonization of Scotland a millennium ago, numerous words of Norse origin became entrenched in the languages and dialects of Scotland. One such borrowing is kilt, which may be related to Norwegian kilte, “to bind, fasten up.” Tawpie was first recorded in English in the 1720s.
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