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Where does the word "bashlyk" come from? It comes from Tatar başlıq, passing through Russian before entering English (1880s).
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Where does the word "bashlyk" come from? It comes from Tatar başlıq, passing through Russian before entering English (1880s).
Bashlyk’s story begins in Tatar: başlıq meant “hood.” From 'baş', head, plus the suffix '-lıq'. By 1800s, the word had taken hold in Russian as bashlyk. Fashionable after Bashkir cavalry fought Napoleon; made uniform issue for Cossack troops in 1862. It reached English by 1880s as bashlyk. Used in English writing on the Caucasus and the Russian army. Today, bashlyk means a hood with long ends that tie around the neck, worn by Cossacks and in the Caucasus.
- Stage 1 · Tatar · medieval başlıq "hood", from 'baş', head, plus the suffix '-lıq'.
- Stage 2 · Russian · 1800s bashlyk "military hood", fashionable after Bashkir cavalry fought Napoleon; made uniform issue for Cossack troops in 1862.
- Stage 3 · English · 1880s bashlyk "Cossack hood", used in English writing on the Caucasus and the Russian army.