List of Spanish words of uncertain origin
Encyclopedia
This is a list of Spanish
words of uncertain origin. Some of these words existed in Latin
and/or Ancient Greek
, but are thought by some scholars to ultimately come from some other source. Many of these words have alternate etymologies
and may also appear on a list of Spanish
words from a different language
.
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
words of uncertain origin. Some of these words existed in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
and/or Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
, but are thought by some scholars to ultimately come from some other source. Many of these words have alternate etymologies
Etymology
Etymology is the study of the history of words, their origins, and how their form and meaning have changed over time.For languages with a long written history, etymologists make use of texts in these languages and texts about the languages to gather knowledge about how words were used during...
and may also appear on a list of Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
words from a different language
Language
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
.
A
- ademán
- agachar
- agalla
- ají
- amargo
- amarillo
- &anchoa
- añicos
- apache
- ardilla
- areito
- arete
- aro
- arrancar
- arrear
- arrieroArrierothumb|250px|right|An arriero loading a [[pack horse]] in [[Zona Sur|southern Chile]]An arriero is a person who transports goods using pack animals.In South America, arrieros transport coffee, maize, cork, wheat, and myriad other items...
- arroyo
- arveja/alverja
- asustar
- azulejoAzulejoAzulejo from the Arabic word Zellige زليج is a form of Portuguese or Spanish painted, tin-glazed, ceramic tilework. They have become a typical aspect of Portuguese culture, having been produced without interruption for five centuries...
- azure Azure (color)Azure (color)The color bleu de France is displayed at right.Bleu de France is a color that has been associated in heraldry with the Kings of France since the 12th century.-Brandeis blue:...
B
- balde (barrel, tub)
- barato
- barraca
- barro
- bata
- baúl
- beso
- bisagra
- bizco
- borrar
- borrego
- &bronce
- bruja
- buitre
- burla
- burlar
- buscar
C
- cabaña,
- cacarear
- caleta
- cama
- cambur
- camilla
- &canica
- caracol
- carcajada
- catalán
- cataluña
- cebra
- celta
- cagarra
- changa
- chango
- charco
- &chileno
- chipre
- chiste
- chorro
- chupar
- cibernética
- coco
- cochino,
- cucubano
G
- gabacho
- gacho
- gago
- gana
- ganga
- garbanzo
- garza
- gobernar
- godo
- gorra
- gorrión
- gorro
- gótico
- graznar
- gusano,
M
- malgache
- malva
- manteca
- mantecado
- mantequilla
- &mascota
- maullar
- metralla
- mimo
- mimar
- mohíno
- moho
- &moneda
- moño
- mueca
- migir
O
- &ola
- olivo
- -ón= augmentative suffix (opposite of a diminutive suffix), as found in balón "big ball.": the same as ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
-one. Examples: guitarrón (from guitarra), salchichón (from salchicha). Exceptions (nouns ending in -ón that are not in the augmentative): aguijón, camarón, empujón.
P
- pantano
- pantalla
- pantera
- parra
- parrilla
- pata
- patán
- patear
- patillas
- patín
- patio
- pato
- patrulla
- pavana
- pelícano
- peluca
- pequeño
- pera
- pito
- porrazo
- prado