This word comes from the Middle English word noumpere, which derives from the Old French nomper, that meant 'different, odd'.

The idea was that the umpire was at a different level and he was an impartial authority in legal disputes (nowadays, the legal term arbitrator is used with this meaning.)

The word umpire was later associated to the person who controls that the rules of a sport are followed correctly. He has the same functions as a referee, but he's called umpire in badminton, baseball, cricket and tennis.

Esta palabra proviene de la palabra del inglés medio noumpere, que deriva del francés antiguo nomper, que significaba 'diferente, desparejo'.

La idea era que el umpire se encontraba a un nivel distinto y era una autoridad imparcial en disputas legales (hoy en día, el término legal arbitrator se usa con este significado).

La palabra umpire fue luego asociada a la persona que controla que se apliquen correctamente las reglas de un deporte. Tiene las mismas funciones que un referee, pero se lo llama umpire en badminton, baseball, cricket y tennis.