Romanian Words of Arabic Origin: Scientific and Technical Vocabulary

• Main Author: Georgeta Rata
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Agroprint Timisoara 2016-10-01
• Series: Scientific Papers Animal Science and Biotechnologies
• Subjects: romanian vocabulary, words of arabic origin, scientific and technical vocabulary
• Online Access: http://spasb.ro/index.php/spasb/article/view/2092
• ISSN: 1841-9364; 2344-4576

There are 141 Romanian words of Arabic origin acquired either directly from Arabic or else indirectly by passing from Arabic into other languages and then into Romanian. Most entered one or more of the Romance languages before entering Romanian. To qualify for this list, a word must be reported in etymology dictionaries as having descended from Arabic. Words associated with the Islamic religion are omitted. Archaic and rare words are also omitted. Given the nature of the journal in which the paper is to be published, the author selected for analysis only about 126 terms belonging to the scientific and technical vocabulary: Adobe, alambic, albatros, alcalin, alchimie, alcool, alfalfa, algebră, algoritm, alidadă, alizarină, amalgam, ambră, anil, antimoniu, azimuth, azur, benjoin, bezoar, bor, cafea, calibre, camfor, carat, carciofoi, caric, cârmâz, carob, chimie, cifru, coton, curcuma, cuşcuş, erg, falafel, fanfară, felucă, fenec, gazelă, gerbil, girafă, halva, hamada, humus, iasomie, jar, julep, kaliu, lac, lămâie, lazurit, liliac, lime, marcasit, masicot, mizenă, muson, nadir, natriu, papagal, rachetă, realgar, sabkha, safari, şah, sandarac, şaorma, şerbet, sirop, sodium, şofran, sorbet, spanac, sumac, tabac, tahân, taifun, talc, tamarin(d), tangerină, tar, tară, tarhon, tarif, tasă, ţechin, ton, varan, zahăr, zenith, zero, zircon, etc. Some of them are obsolescent, but a large number are in everyday use and have been so well assimilated into Romanian that they have produced other words through derivation and composition, or they have acquired new meanings.