As I was eating a tangerine this afternoon, I had a major geek moment. I was looking at the Villa Algarve, the beautiful Portuguese mansion in ruins across the street from our flat, and started to think about the word "Algarve." I learned at some point (can't remember if it was thanks to my mom or Ms. Fernandez, my 10th grade Spanish teacher) that words in Spanish that begin with "al-" are of Arabic origin. The same thing applies to Portuguese, and as I ate my tangerine it clicked that the villa's name was of Moorish influence. Then I started to think about all the other words in Portuguese that start with "al-" and I realized that it's quite an interesting bunch:
almanaque (almanac)
almirante (admiral)
aldeia (village)
alquimia (alchemy)
álgebra (algebra)
algoritmo (algorithm)
alcachofra (artichoke)
alcaparra (caper)
alfarroba (carob)
alecrim (rosemary)
alface (lettuce)
álcool (alcohol)
alambique (distillery)
alcatrão (tar)
algodão (cotton)
almofada (pillow)
albino (white/non-pigmented)
alvará (a license to do business)
alfândega (customs (like border customs, not the culture of a country))
alfaiate (tailor)
algemas (handcuffs)
alcatéia (pack of wolves)
With a little help from Google, I also discovered that there are other Arabic words in Portuguese that don't start with "al-." Some of my favorites are:
açúcar (sugar)
açafrão (saffron)
berinjela (eggplant)
bússola (compass)
enxaqueca (migraine headache)
haxixe (hashish)
gergelim (sesame seed)
guitarra (guitar)
jasmim (jasmine)
máscara (mask)
marfim (ivory)
quintal (back yard)
recife (reef)
refém (hostage)
romã (pomegranate)
tâmara (date)
tarefa (task)
xadrez (chess)
xarope (syrup)
zefir (zephyr)
It's fascinating to me what you can deduce about a culture given its linguistic influences and contributions. Since moving to Mozambique, I have become particularly interested in the Arabs and their millenial tradition as seafearers and traders in these parts of the world. To read more about the Muslim domination of the Indian Ocean sea routes and how their control over gold and spices eventually led the Europeans to explore Africa, read this fascinating issue of Saudi Aramco World.
2 comments:
Wow - what a story (your profile, that is)! I'm looking forward to reading some of your old posts and learning more about your adventures. I've added you to the Sunday Scribblings sidebar (though hopefully Meg will know how to copy the image, I don't) and hope to see your entry this weekend!
thank you for this, ali, amidst my attempts to catch up on your life (and my own at that too ;-) )
you've touched on something worthwhile and beautiful, something that has occupied my mind for decades and which only now is finally gaining some form in reality itself...
i've always been fascinated by the culture of the swahili people, along the coast from somalia to mozambique, who dared cross the treacherous seas to south and south east asia in the same way so many others in europe were doing the same at the same time but totally unknown to each other...
it was only after the (portuguese!) captain, vasco da gama who managed to sail around the cape and discover a whole new world for the european marauders, that uncountably many world cultures came into collision... no fault of his own, but the legacy he left behind has been a debilitating one...
sorry, rant mode this evening, but your post helpt crystallise a number of congruent but unconnected streams of thought in one moment...
thank you, and keep well...
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