Nipper (n.)
One of the meanings of nipper (others include a crab's claw or a pair of pliers) is a young person (usually a boy). A cousin of mine always used to refer to his younger brother as "ow' nip'". People argue about the etymology of nipper. Most suggest that it goes back to the sixteenth century use of the verb nip to mean arrest, leading to the idea of speed, a young person being nippy or quick about the place and hence a nipper. Others go for a nautical origin. At one time young boys were employed by the navy to weave together anchor cables. Because the cable of larger vessels were often too thick to go round the capstan thinner, messenger lines would be attached. The process of fastening the cables was known as nipping, hence nippers. Humour is thus being employed in either case. Alan Titchmarsh has a book called When I was a nipper.
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