According to "Online Etymology"  paddle first entered the English language in 1407 and originally had the meaning of "a short spade". Then a kind of oar to steer a boat with. It’s more popular  meaning as a flat board to beat clothes ( or schoolboys) with dates from 1828 and is apparently American in origin.

The word bears some resemblence to French poêle meaning a "frying pan" and the two words do have a common origin in a Medieval Latin word ‘padela’ which Online etymology says is probably a variation of Classical Latin patella (pan; plate). A cognate is also found in Occitan (Provencal) padèla also meaning "frying pan" and its Canadian French variant poêlon.  ::)

And Italian padella, and Spanish paella, and Portuguese panela.

Brazilian dude

mmm…
paella
I was trying to sleep but now I’m hungry.
thanks, BD

This is one of those rare moments when I find myself questioning the Online Etymology Dictionary.

paddle (v.)

   "to dabble, wade in water," 1530, probably cognate with Low Ger. paddeln "tramp about," freq. of padjen "to tramp, to run in short steps," from pad (v.). Meaning "to move in water by means of paddles" (1677) is a different word, from paddle (n.).

paddle (n.)

   1407, padell "small spade," from M.L. padela, perhaps from L. patella "pan, plate," dim. of patina. Meaning "short oar with a wide blade" is from 1624. As an instrument used for beating clothes (and slaves, and schoolboys), it is recorded from 1828, Amer.Eng.; the verb meaning "to beat with a paddle, spank" is first recorded 1856. Paddlewheel is from 1805.

The underlined sentence from the above quote is the part I find questionable.  I don’t have time to go into details about the reason I question it right now, but it seems pretty self-evident to me.

-Tim

That does seem strange, but actually I’ve never heard the word used in the first sense, as in ‘to wade’. I’ve only heard it used as a verb in the sense of to use a paddle in water, or to dog-paddle. I’d say it’s obsolete at least in the states, if it ever made it over. ‘Pad’ I get, probably unrelated to ‘paddle’.

Btw, Tim, you remind me of Fermat

melissa  

;D  I had to look up Fermat to be reminded of what you mean…

I have discovered a truly remarkable proof which this margin is too small to contain.

-Tim ;D

Being non-mathematically inclined, although I had heard the term "Fermat’s Last Theorem", I wasn’t sure what it was about.

Intrigued by your quote, I looked it up on Google.

As my eyes glazed over in the face of all that algebra, I realised that it reminded me of my dear grandfather, whose books contained many an addition in the margins, written in a variety of languages on a variety of topics. Where the margin proved too small, he often sellotaped in a sheet of paper containing his notes and commentary on a given paragraph. Sometimes he added appendices to books on the back (blank) pages.

He even did this with novels, although he wasn’t given to reading many of them. Grandmother, on the other hand, was a great one for historical romances. Occasionally I would borrow one, and come across a notation from my grandfather, usually a single word such as "Nonsense!". Perhaps he read more of them than he let on.

Azh
(who comes from a long line of great readers)