remove hair from hides in preparation for tanning, to serve as a mordant in dying cloth, and to remove rust from iron. Ancient Romans used fermented human urine (in the form of lant) to cleanse grease stains from clothing. The emperor Nero instituted a tax () on the urine industry, continued by his successor, Vespasian. The Latin saying ('money doesn't smell') is attributed to Vespasian – said to have been his reply to a complaint from his son about the unpleasant nature of the tax. Vespasian's name is still attached to public urinals in France (), Italy (), and Romania (). Alchemists spent much time trying to extract gold from urine, which led to discoveries such as white phosphorus by German alchemist Hennig Brand when distilling fermented urine in 1669. In 1773 the French chemist Hilaire Rouelle discovered the organic compound urea by boiling urine dry. Language The English word urine (, ) comes from the Latin (-ae, f.), which is cognate with ancient words in various Indo-European languages that concern water, liquid, diving, rain, and urination (for example Sanskrit meaning 'it rains' or meaning 'water' and Greek meaning 'to urinate'). The onomatopoetic term piss predates the word urine, but is now considered vulgar. Urinate was at first used mostly in medical contexts. Piss is also used in such colloquialisms as to piss off, piss poor, and the slang expression pissing down to mean heavy rain. Euphemisms and expressions used between parents and children (such as wee, pee, and many others) have long existed. Lant is a word for aged urine, originating from the Old English word referring to urine in general. See also Drinking urine (urophagia) Ureotelic Urine therapy Urolagnia, an attraction to urine Notes References External links Urinanalysis at the University of Utah Eccles Health Sciences Library Urine Chemistry at drugs.com Animal physiology Body fluids Sanitation