<P> From 1871 to 1913, "the average U.S. tariff on dutiable imports never fell below 38 percent (and) gross national product (GNP) grew 4.3 percent annually, twice the pace in free trade Britain and well above the U.S. average in the 20th century," notes Alfred Eckes Jr., chairman of the U.S. International Trade Commission under President Reagan . </P> <P> In 1896, the GOP platform pledged to "renew and emphasize our allegiance to the policy of protection, as the bulwark of American industrial independence, and the foundation of development and prosperity . This true American policy taxes foreign products and encourages home industry . It puts the burden of revenue on foreign goods; it secures the American market for the American producer . It upholds the American standard of wages for the American workingman ." </P> <P> The small Spanish town of Tarifa is sometimes credited with being the origin of the word "tariff", since it was the first port in history to charge merchants for the use of its docks . The name "Tarifa" itself is derived from the name of the Berber warrior, Tarif ibn Malik . However, other sources assume that the origin of tariff is the Italian word tariffa translated as "list of prices, book of rates", which is derived from the Arabic ta'rif meaning "making known" or "to define". </P> <Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section does not cite any sources . Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (January 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table>

What is the origin of the word tariff