adobe

Where does the word "adobe" come from? It comes from Egyptian tobe, passing through Arabic and Spanish before entering English (1700s).

Adobe’s story begins in Egyptian: tobe meant “mud brick.” An ancient Egyptian word for a mud brick. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Arabic as al-tob. "the brick", borrowed from Coptic Egyptian. From there it passed into Spanish as adobe by medieval. Moorish builders brought mud-brick construction to Spain, and Arabic 'al-tub' became Spanish 'adobe'. It reached English by 1700s as adobe. English speakers met it in the Spanish-built missions and pueblos of the American Southwest. Today, adobe means a building material made of sun-dried mud and straw, or a structure built from it.

1. Stage 1 · Egyptian · ancient tobe "mud brick", an ancient Egyptian word for a mud brick.
2. Stage 2 · Arabic · medieval al-tob "the brick", "the brick", borrowed from Coptic Egyptian.
3. Stage 3 · Spanish · medieval adobe "sun-dried mud brick", Moorish builders brought mud-brick construction to Spain, and Arabic 'al-tub' became Spanish 'adobe'.
4. Stage 4 · English · 1700s adobe "sun-dried mud brick construction", English speakers met it in the Spanish-built missions and pueblos of the American Southwest.