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by scoot 4605 days ago
To answer my own question: 'The word doodle first appeared in the early 17th century to mean a fool or simpleton. It may derive from the German Dudeltopf or Dudeldop, meaning simpleton or noodle (literally "nightcap").' [1]

Not sure why the author of this article couldn't be bothered to complete the etymology he started.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doodle