[1930–35; ‹ Norw minkehval, allegedly after a crew member of the Norwegian whaling pioneer Svend Foyn (1809–94),named Meincke, who mistook a pod of minkes for blue whales]This word is first recorded in the period 1930–35. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: cloverleaf, kickback, logical positivism, preset, saddle stitch