Every day, when we talk, we pronounce a lot of words that come
from a lot of different countries.
Actually, these
words, that we
use generally,
have different
roots.
Do you know that words like “lemon”,
“porter”, “cup”, “mattress”, and so
on, have an Arabian root?
These words were born in Middle East
but they
were
arrived
since a
lot of years and now we use them every
day in our conversations, speeches and
discussions.
The various “Arabismi” and Words found in the Italian language
deriving from the Arabian one.
WORDS DERIVING FROM THE MILITARY AND COMMERCIAL
LANGUAGE
Aguzzino: it comes from the Arabic “Al-Wazir”, that originally
meant “minister”, after a semantic degradation it became
Alqazil in Spanish, and finally the Italian Aguzzino. It
indicates the Jailor, precisely the cruel one, and it’s used
often to indicate an evil person.
Assassino: from the Arabic “Hashishiyya” or “Hashshashiyya”,
that literally means ”Hashish smoker”. It comes from an
ancient sect of assassins, who made use of hashish before
committing their crimes. On the Italian language it simply
means assassin.
Facchino: it once meant “theologian” in the Arabic language,
then changed to “Customs Officer”, and was imported in Italy
through Venice in the sixteenth century. It indicates someone
who carries heavy weights for other people.
Ragazzo: there are several theories about this word; the most
accepted one suggests that Ragazzo comes from the Arabian
word Raqqa’sò”, that meant messenger or courier. It means
“boy” in Italian.
Cassero: this word is not very common: it comes from the
Arabian “Qasòr”, Castle, and has three meanings in the
Italian language. It may indicate the highest and the most
fortified part of a castle, or the bridge (command deck) of a
wooden ship, or even a small warehouse containing wood
logs, tools and such.
MATHS/ASTRONOMY
Algebra: common word, introduced in Europe by the
mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci, it derives from “al-glabr
wa al-muha bala”, it means science of the reductions and
comparisons.
FOOD, PLANTS AND SPICIES
Marzapane: the origin of this word is quite curios: the Arabian
“Martabana” was a particular type of porcelain vase. This
vase was often used to contain the almonds and sugar paste,
typical Sicilian sweet, that acquired with time the name of this
container.
Albicocco: from the Arabian “al-barqu-q”, collective name for
plums, it means apricot tree.
Arancio: it comes from “na’rangì”, that comes from an ancient
Persian word. It means orange.
Limone: from the Arabian and Persian “limun”, probably
deriving from another eastern language. This word came to
Italy, together with the fruit itself, during the Crusades. It
indicates the lemon.
CHEMICAL WORD
Scarlatto: word coming from the Arabian/Persian “saqirlat”,
that was used to indicate clothes dyed with a particular red
ink; it can be translated with “scarlet”, which is a darker tone
of red.
Alchimia: it comes from the Arabian word “al-kimiya”, a
hidden science that was (theoretically) used to make the
legendary Philosopher’s stone, its meaning changed only
slightly in the Italian language, it is commonly used to
indicate the science of creating potions and such.
Alcol: this word has a complicate origin: it comes from the
Spanish “kuhòul”, a word that was used by the alchemists to
indicate the “noblest powder”, it was also used to describe
the purest part of wine, that is alcohol of course.
Elisir: it comes from the Arabian “al-iksir”, which is the
Philosopher’s stone, and is used to indicate a corroborative or
miraculous drink; in English is called Elixir.
HOUSE ITEMS AND FURNITURES
Baldacchino: another very rare word, this one comes from the
Arabian “bagdadì”, adjective used to indicate something that
comes from Baghdad, and later precious tissue coming from
Baghdad, it can be translated with “canopy”, a round or boxshaped decoration that overhangs a bed.
Materasso: from the Arabian “matrah”, that derives from the
verb “taraha”, “to throw”, it indicates one of the most
wonderful items in this world, the mattress. This word
appeared simultaneously in Italy, France, Germany and
England, but it almost surely spread from a southern country,
Italy in this case.
Tazza: this word comes from “tasa”, that indicates a cup, and
was imported in Europe from the various ports in the East
Mediterranean Sea.
OTHE WORDS
Bizzeffe: it comes from the Arabian, in particular from the
maghreb area; “bizzaf” was used to indicate abundance. In
Italian the form “a bizzeffe” is an informal way to say “a lot
of”.
Scacco: like the numbers, this word was probably imported
by the Indian word “shitrang”, then was imported by Persia
and finally from the Arabians; it means “chess”, and the
Persian-derived from to end the game, which is “shah-mat”,
the King is dead, became the Italian “sacco matto” (crazy
chess”.
We hope you will find this short list interesting.
The students of the 5a A