catamaran

Where does the word "catamaran" come from? It comes from Tamil kattumaram, and was adopted directly into English (1600s-1700s).

Catamaran’s story begins in Tamil: kattumaram meant “tied logs.” Literally "tied wood", describing logs lashed together. It reached English by 1600s-1700s as catamaran. First recorded in 1697 in the buccaneer-explorer William Dampier's 'New Voyage Round the World'; Tamil 'tied wood', a raft of lashed logs used by Coromandel Coast fishermen. Today, catamaran means a boat with two parallel hulls.

1. Stage 1 · Tamil · medieval kattumaram "tied logs", literally "tied wood", describing logs lashed together.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1600s-1700s catamaran "a twin-hulled boat", first recorded in 1697 in the buccaneer-explorer William Dampier's 'New Voyage Round the World'; Tamil 'tied wood', a raft of lashed logs used by Coromandel Coast fishermen.