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Cassava

3 stages from Taino to English.

Today it means a starchy tropical root vegetable, a staple food crop also known as manioc or yuca

Where does the word "cassava" come from? It comes from Taino kasabi, passing through Spanish before entering English (1550s-1600s).

1
Stage 1 of 3
kasabi
Taino · pre-1500s
"a starchy edible root"
named the starchy root plant and the flatbread made from it
2
Stage 2 of 3
cazabe
Spanish · 1550s
"a starchy root crop and the bread made from it"
adopted by Spanish colonists in the Caribbean for the root and its bread
3
Stage 3 of 3
cassava
English · 1550s-1600s
"a starchy tropical root crop"
anglicized from Spanish/Portuguese accounts of Caribbean and South American agriculture
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