VAN  , an homonymous word, whose different meanings have no etymological connexion . In the most

common sense " van " is merely an abbreviation of the Oriental word " caravan " (q.v.), and is applied to any large covered cart or vehicle used for the conveyance of goods, especially furniture, or, on railways, to a closed carriage for passengers' luggage, or for the accommodation of the guard . In the sense of the front portion of an army or fleet, or the advanced portion of any body, actually or metaphorically, " van " represents the French avant (Lat. ab ante), in front, as in avant-garde, van-guard, the earliest form in which the word came into English . Lastly, the word is used as a variant of " fan " (Lat. vannus) , for a contrivance for winnowing grain, for a bird's wing, and in mining to an appliance for separating ore by washing .