List of Spanish words of various origins explained
This is a list of Spanish words of various origins. It includes words from Australian Aboriginal languages, Balti, Berber, Caló, Czech, Dravidian languages, Egyptian, Greek, Hungarian, Ligurian, Mongolian, Persian, Slavic (such as Old Church Slavonic, Polish, Russian, and Croatian). Some of these words existed in Latin as loanwords from other languages. Some of these words have alternate etymologies and may also appear on a list of Spanish words from a different language.
Australian Aboriginal languages
- Spanish; Castilian: canguro kangaroo
from English English: kanguru, kangaroo, first recorded by Captain James Cook in 1770, from the Guugu Yimidhirr word gangurru.
Balti
from English English: polo (1872), from Balti, from the same family as Tibetan .
Berber
from Berber Berber languages: merīn (modern Spanish Spanish; Castilian: Benimerines), the people of North Africa who originally bred this type of sheep.
from Spanish; Castilian: moro, from Latin Latin: Maurus, from Ancient Greek, probably of Berber origin, but possibly related to the Arabic Arabic: مَغْرِب,from the Semitic root (ġ-r-b).
- Spanish; Castilian: moro a Moor
see moreno above
Caló
- Spanish; Castilian: calé a Romani person
from Caló, see caló below
the word is possibly related to Sanskrit and/or Ancient Greek .
- Spanish; Castilian: cañí Caló, Romani person
possibly from cali, feminine of Spanish; Castilian: calé and/or Spanish; Castilian: caló see calé and caló above
- Spanish; Castilian: abalorio glass bead
from Arabic Arabic: الْبَلُّورِي, from Arabic: بَلُّور, from Ancient Greek Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: βήρυλλος from Undetermined: brullion, from Prakrit Prakrit languages: भेरुलिय, from Pāli Pali: भेउरिय ; possibly from or simply akin to a Dravidian source represented by Tamil Tamil: வெஇருஒர்; விஅர் .[1]
- Spanish; Castilian: brillante brilliant, diamond
from Spanish; Castilian: brillar, see brillar below
- Spanish; Castilian: brillar to shine
possibly from Latin Latin: beryllus, from Ancient Greek Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: βήρυλλος ; see abalorio above
- Spanish; Castilian: mango mango
from English English: mango, from Portuguese Portuguese: manga, from Tamil Tamil: மன்கய், from and .
from French French: mangouste, from Portuguese Portuguese: mangús, from Marathi Marathi: मंगूस, of Dravidian origin.
- Spanish; Castilian: paliacate handkerchief
shortened from Spanish; Castilian: pañuelo de Paliacate, The Spanish Spanish; Castilian: pañuelo de Paliacate is a partial calque of French French: mouchoirs de Paliacate (1788).
The Real Academia Española (Spanish Royal Academy) claims that Paliacate comes from Nahuatl Nahuatl languages: pal and Nahuatl languages: yacatl .
- Spanish; Castilian: paria pariah, outcast
from Tamil, literally, from, possibly from .
- aciago = unhappy, sad: probably from Latin aegyptius dies, "Egyptian day," from Ancient Greek Aigyptiakos (Αιγυπτιακός) "Egyptian" (adjective), from Aigyptos, see egipcio below.
- barca = boat, launch, barge: from Late Latin barca, from Ancient Greek báris "flat-bottomed boat, launch" of Egyptian origin.
- barco= boat, ship: from barca, see barca above
- copto= a Copt, the Coptic language: from Arabic qubt, qibt, "Copts," from Coptic, "an Egyptian," from Ancient Greek Aigýptios "Egyptian" (adjective), see egipcio below
- egipcio = an Egyptian, of Egypt: from Latin Aegyptius, from Aígyptus "Egypt," from Ancient Greek Aigyptos, from regional Egyptian Hikuptah, variant of Egyptian Hat-kaptah, one of the ancient names of Memphis, Egypt.
- embarcar = to embark, to board a ship: from Late Latin imbarcare, from in- + barca, see barca above
- gitano= a Gitano, a Gypsy: from Medieval Latin Aegyptanus, from Latin Aegyptus, see egipcio above.
- papel = paper: from Catalán paper, from Latin papyrus, "paper, papyrus," see papiro below
- papiro= papyrus: from Latin papyrus, from Ancient Greek pápyros, "papyrus," possibly of Egyptian origin.
- Spanish; Castilian: coche car
originally, a carriage pulled by two horses, ultimately from Hungarian Hungarian: kocsi, short for Hungarian: kocsi szekér, the Hungarian city where carriages with suspension were first made.
- Spanish; Castilian: sable = a sabre
from Old High German German, Old High (ca.750-1050);: sabel, probably derived from Hungarian Hungarian: szablya (1393), literally, from Hungarian: szabni .[2]
Japanese
from Japanese Japanese: 柿
- Spanish; Castilian: quimono kimono
from Japanese Japanese: 着物 literally, from Japanese: 着る and Japanese: 物 .
Ligurian
- Spanish; Castilian: hoz sickle
from Latin Latin: falx, possibly from Ligurian.
Mongolian
- Spanish; Castilian: mongol a Mongol
from Mongolian, documented first in Chinese, from uncertain source.
- Spanish; Castilian: kan/Spanish; Castilian: jan khan
an honorific title from Turko-Mongol
Persian language
Aside from the fact that Persian words entered through Latin, other words of Persian origin transmitted through Arabic through the Arab Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula during the Middle Ages.
- Spanish; Castilian: ajedrez chess
from Arabic Arabic: اَلشَّطْرَنْج, from Persian Persian: شترنگ from the Sanskrit Sanskrit: चतुरङ्ग, the shape of the original chess board in India.
- Spanish; Castilian: asesino assassin
from Arabic hashshshin "someone who is addicted to hashish (marijuana)," originally used to refer to the followers of the Persian Hassan-i-Sabah (Persian: حسن صباح), the Hashshashin.
from Persian Persian: آیَتُٱلله from Arabic Arabic: آيَة اللّٰه .
- Spanish; Castilian: azafrán saffron
from Arabic Arabic: اَلزَّعْفَرَان from Persian Persian: زعفران or Persian: زرپران .
- Spanish; Castilian: azúcar sugar
from Arabic Arabic: سكر, from Persian Persian: سكر .
- Spanish; Castilian: babucha slippers, babouche, from Persian Persian: پاپوش, literally meaning via Arabic Arabic: بابوش .
- Spanish; Castilian: bazar bazaar, from Persian Persian: بازار .
- Spanish; Castilian: berenjena eggplant, aubergine, from Persian Persian: بادنجان, of the same meaning, via Arabic Arabic: بَاذِنْجَان .
- caravana = caravan, from Persian کاروان kārvān, a company of travelers, pilgrims, or merchants on a long journey through desert or hostile regions: a train of pack animals, thru Italian caravana, carovana.
- caravasar = caravanserai, caravansary, Persian: کاروانسرای kārvānsarāy is a Persian compound word combining kārvān "caravan" with sarāy "palace", "building with enclosed courts", from کاروان kārvān caravan + سرا sarā palace, large house, inn; an inn in eastern countries where caravans rest at night that is commonly a large bare building surrounding a court.
- derviche = from Persian درویش darvish, a member of a Sufi Muslim fraternity, literally translated "mendicant".
- diván = from Persian دیوان dēvān (="place of assembly", "roster"), from Old Persian دیپی dipi (="writing, document") + واهانم (="house")
- escabeche: Pickle or marinade. From Persian Sekba via Arabic as-sukbaj.
- escarlata = scarlet: from Pers. سقرلات saqerlât "a type of red cloth". a rich cloth of bright color. a vivid red that is yellower and slightly paler than apple red
- jazmín: jasmine. From Persian yasmin via Arabic.
- kan/jan = from Persian khan (Persian: خان)
- meaning "inn", derives from Middle Persian hʾn (xān, “house”)
- an honorific title from Turko-Mongol, adapted to Persian
- nenúfar: Water-lily. From Persian nilofer, niloofar, niloufar, via Arabic naylufar.
- roque = rook (chess piece), from Persian رخ rukh via Arabic روخ rukh.
- sah = shah شاه shāh, from Old Persian χšāyaþiya (="king"), from an Old Persian verb meaning "to rule"
- Teherán = Tehran (تهران Tehrân, Iranian capital), from Persian words "Tah" meaning "end or bottom" and "Rân" meaning "[mountain] slope"—literally, bottom of the mountain slope.
- tulipán = tulip, from Persian دلبند dulband Band = To close, To tie.
- turbante = turban, from Persian دلبند dulband Band = To close, To tie.
Slavic languages
- Spanish; Castilian: cibelina, cebellina sable
from Old French French, Old (842-ca.1400);: zibeline, zibelline, from Italian Italian: zibellino, of Slavic origin: compare Russian Russian: соболь and Polish Polish: soból.
- Spanish; Castilian: cuarzo quartz
from German German: Quarz, from Old High German German, Old High (ca.750-1050);: quarz, from a Western Slavic form *kwardy, from Slavic Slavic languages: *tvrd: compare Czech Czech: tvrdý Serbian: Serbian: тврд/Serbian: tvrd, Polish Polish: twardy, and Russian Russian: твёрдый .
Serbian
- Spanish; Castilian: vampire vampire Spanish; Castilian: vamp a dangerously attractive woman
from Austrian German German: Vampyre, borrowed from Serbian Serbian: вампир/Serbian: vampir,
Czech
- Spanish; Castilian: pistola pistol
from German German: Pistole, from Czech Czech: pištal
- Spanish; Castilian: calesa kalesa, a carriage with low wheels and a folding cover
from French French: calèche, from German German: Kalesche, from Czech Czech: kolesa, from Proto-Slavic Slavic languages: kolo, from Proto-Indo-European Indo-European languages: kwel-[3]
Polish
- Spanish; Castilian: polaco = a Polack
from Polish Polish: pol-
Russian
- Spanish; Castilian: babushka
from Russian Russian: бабушка
from Medieval Latin Latin: Ruthenia, from Russian: Rutheni, Ruteni, from Old Russian Русь
from Russian Russian: спутник
Croatian
- Spanish; Castilian: corbata necktie, cravat
from Italian Italian: carvatta with implicit sense, from Croatian Croatian: hrvat of uncertain origin, but from the same root as Old Church Slavonic Church Slavic; Old Slavonic; Church Slavonic; Old Bulgarian; Old Church Slavonic: Chǔrvatinǔ .
References
- Book: Gómez de Silva, Guido . Breve diccionario etimológico de la lengua española . 968-16-2812-8.
See also
Notes and References
- Web site: http://www.bartleby.com/61/74/B0207400.html.
- Web site: Harper . Douglas . Sabre . Online Etymology Dictionary . 2001 .
- kwel-1 . The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language . 4th . 2000 . https://web.archive.org/web/20051230145623/http://www.bartleby.com/61/roots/IE250.html . http://www.bartleby.com/61/roots/IE250.html . dead . 2005-12-30 . Kwel-1. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. .
