English Words from Arabic
giraffe
الزَّرافَة
zarāfa
From Arabic zarāfa, through Italian giraffa. American Heritage says it is 'probably of African origin'; Ibn Durayd (d. 933) thought it Arabic, and Arab scholars linked it to zarāfa, 'a crowd', for the many animals it seems to combine.
- Meaning in Arabic
- giraffe
- Arabic today says
- الزَّرافَة
The path between languageszarāfa → giraffa → giraffe
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