Molotov cocktail など

前回、IED という単語を取り上げたが、その関連で bomb や explosive といった単語を使っていない爆発物・発火物として、Molotov cocktail と booby trap が頭に浮かんだので、ついでに短く書いておきたい。

まず前者だが、「火炎瓶」という、とんでもない cocktail である。

simple gasoline bomb: a crude bomb, usually made of a bottle filled with a flammable liquid such as gasoline and a wick that is set alight just before it is thrown

以下の説明には由来が含まれているが、人名に基づくものであることでは共通しているものの、使われるようになった状況（戦争）が異なっている。諸説あるということだろうか。

- an incendiary bomb made from a breakable container, such as a bottle, filled with flammable liquid and provided with a rag wick. Used by the Soviets against the invading German armies in World War II, these bombs were nicknamed after V. M. Molotov, a foreign minister of the Soviet Union at that time.

- a crude incendiary grenade consisting of a bottle filled with a flammable liquid and a wick that is ignited before throwing: used originally for setting fire to enemy tanks during the Spanish Civil War.
[Origin: 1935-40; named after V. M. Molotov]

- 1940, from Russo-Finnish War (used and satirically named by the Finns), from Molotov (from Rus. molot "hammer") name taken by Vyacheslav Mikhailovich Skriabin (1890-1986), Soviet minister of foreign affairs 1939-1949.

booby trap は「仕掛け地雷・偽装爆弾」、転じて「陰謀・わな」といった意味がある。以下、オンライン辞書からの引用である。

In warfare, a booby trap is an antipersonnel device placed in building or in a noncombat area that has a psychological draw for enemy soldiers.

The term comes from the implication such a trap will be set off by a foolish person (a booby). The first use of the term is from the 1850s, when it was used to describe practical jokes that are set off by their victim.

In fact, the term is still used to describe a type of firework which explodes loudly when strings protruding from either end are pulled, which may be tied to a door handle.

( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booby_trap )