Sunday, May 20, 2007

Arabic Words in the English Language

Check out this site. "You may think you don't speak Arabic but there are more words of Arabic origin in English than you might expect."

Here's a list (I won't vouch for its accuracy): admiral, adobe, alchemy, alcohol, alcove, alembic, alfalfa, algebra, algorithm, alkali, almanac, amalgam, aniline, apricot, arsenal, arsenic, artichoke, assassin, aubergine, azure, Bedouin, benzine(?), Betelgeuse, bint, borax, cable, calabash, calibre, caliph, camel, camise, camphor, candy, cane, cannabis, carafe, carat, caraway, carmine, carob, casbah, check, checkmate, cinnabar, cipher, coffee, copt, cotton, crimson, crocus, cumin, damask, dhow, dragoman, elixir, emir, fakir, fellah, garble, gauze, gazelle, ghoul, Gibraltar, giraffe, grab, guitar, gypsum, halva, harem, hashish, hazard, henna, hookah, imam, jar, jasmine, jerboa, jessamine, jinn, kafir, khamsin, khan, kismet, kohl, lacquer, lake, lemon, lilac, lime, lute, magazine, mahdi, marabout, marzipan, massacre, massage, mastaba, mate, mattress, mecca, minaret, mizzen, mocha, mohair, monsoon, mosque, muezzin, mufti, mullah, mummy, muslim, muslin, myrrh, nabob, nacre, nadir, orange, ottoman, popinjay, racket, safari, saffron, saloop, sash, scallion, senna, sequin, serif, sesame, shackle, sheikh, sherbet, shrub, sirocco, sofa, spinach, sudd, sufi, sugar, sultan, sultana, syrup, tabby, talc, talisman, tamarind, tambourine, tarboosh, tare, tariff, tarragon, Trafalgar, typhoon, vega, vizier, wadi, zenith, zero

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