balatron

 One of the most surprising Google Ngrams I have seen is for the word balatron.  It leaps up in the 1820s, then flatlines by the 1830s, until suddenly in the 1930s it curves up again, not so high but still noticeably and gains ground post 2000. 

 The OED has two citations for it from the 1600s. They acknowledge that this entry was published in 1885 and has not been updated.  A balatron or balatroon is a buffoon or contemptible fellow. Cockeram (one of the citations) provides the definition ‘a rascally base knave’. It is a direct borrowing of the Latin balatro, balatronem a prattling fool. My Latin dictionary suggests that this is a variant form derived from blatero to babble, which in turn comes from the Greek blaks stupid.

 Why this word should, at this stage of its life, be hauled up from obscurity to become a rather upmarket term of abuse I do not know. It has recently been adopted as the stage name of the musician/DJ pictured above who was taken by the word meaning ‘buffoon, clown’ and exclaimed ‘Well, that I am, so I shouted “SOLD Mr Internet,” and bam! Balatron.’