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Dahomey

is not derived from Daho, the founder of the palace so called, but is a corruption of Danh-homen, “Danh’s Belly.” The story is as follows: Ardrah divided his kingdom at death between his three sons, and Daho, one of the sons, received the northern portion. Being an enterprising and ambitious man, he coveted the country of his neighbour Danh, King of Gedavin, and first applied to him for a plot of land to build a house on. This being granted, Daho made other requests in quick succession, and Danh’s patience being exhausted, he exclaimed, “Must I open my belly for you to build on?” On hearing this, Daho declared himself insulted, made war on Danh, and slew him. He then built his palace where Danh fell, and called it Danh-homen. (Nineteenth Century, October, 1890, pp. 605–6.)

 

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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.

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Daggers
Daggers Drawn (At)
Daggle-tail or Draggle-tail
Dagobert
Dagon (Hebrew, Jag On, the fish On)
Dagonet (Sir)
Daguerreotype
Dagun
Dahak
Dahlia
Dahomey
Daïboth
Daikoku
Daïri
Dairy
Dais
Daisies
Daisy
Daisy (Solomon)
Daisy-cutter (A)
Daisy-roots

See Also:

Dahomey