Common term in Germany for intoxication due to excessive alcohol consumption. It has been in use under "to have (buy) a monkey (sit)" since the beginning of the 19th century. The origin is not certain. Among other things, the idiom is said to be due to the monkey's alleged drunkenness. A second variant mentions the similarity and thus confusion of the Czech expressions "opice" (monkey) and "opit se" (to get drunk). And a third says that this refers to the jugglers who used to appear at fairs with a monkey on their shoulder.
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Egon Mark
Diplom-Sommelier, Weinakademiker und Weinberater, Volders (Österreich)