Aqua vitae

Aquae vitae Norvegicae lagoena et scyphus

Aqua vitae^[1] est locutio alchemica quae indicat potionem adeo fortem ut "ardeat"; qua ratione a scriptoribus medicis diaeteticisque "aqua ardens" appellatur. Hodie hoc nomen datur variis potionibus distillatis, i.e. spiritibus sive vini (e.g. Cognacensi) sive aliarum materiarum (e.g. vischio). Haec locutio variis linguis adoptatur, e.g. francogallica (eau de vie), germanica (Lebenswasser), scandanavicis (akvavit), celticis (uisce beatha i.q. vischium), et fortasse slavicis (cf. водка "parva aqua").

↑ "Aqua vitae ... 1. A term of the alchemists applied to ardent spirits or unrectified alcohol; sometimes applied, in commerce, to ardent spirits of the first distillation ... 2. Hence, pop. Any form in which ardent spirits have been drunk, as brandy, whisky, etc. ..." in The Oxford English Dictionary (Oxonii: Clarendon Press, 1989. 20 voll.)

[1] "Aqua vitae ... 1. A term of the alchemists applied to ardent spirits or unrectified alcohol; sometimes applied, in commerce, to ardent spirits of the first distillation ... 2. Hence, pop. Any form in which ardent spirits have been drunk, as brandy, whisky, etc. ..." in The Oxford English Dictionary (Oxonii: Clarendon Press, 1989. 20 voll.)

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Aqua vitae

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