Why Ambulances are Called Ambulances
The word “ambulance” ultimately derives from the Latin “ambulare,” meaning “to walk.” This gave rise to the French “hôpital ambulant,” essentially meaning “mobile hospital.” In the beginning, this didn’t mean as we think of it today, but was generally just used to refer to a temporary medical structure that could be easily moved, particularly early on referring to movable army medical hospitals.
“Ambulance,” in English, first appeared around 1798, which also referred to these temporary hospital structures at first.
Mobile medical transport vehicles were also being called ambulances in French around this time thanks to Frenchman Dominque-Jean Larrey and his “flying ambulance” (ambulance volantes). These ambulances were designed to get injured soldiers off the battlefield and to medical aid during battle, rather than waiting until the fight was over as was common before.
By the mid-nineteenth century, the word (in English) extended to refer to any vehicle used to transport the wounded from battle fields to the military hospitals. One of the first instances of this was during the Crimean War (1853-1856). Shortly thereafter, during the American Civil War, such medical transport vehicles were known as “ambulance wagons.” The former, “ambulance,” name for mobile medical vehicles has stuck around ever since.
source:::: today i founout .com
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