curare

Where does the word "curare" come from? It comes from Cariban kurari, passing through Spanish/Portuguese before entering English (1670s-1800s).

Curare’s story begins in Cariban: kurari meant “an arrow poison.” Named the paralyzing plant poison used on hunting arrows. By 1670s, the word had taken hold in Spanish/Portuguese as curare. Walter Raleigh described poison arrows in Guiana in 1596; curare later became a surgical muscle relaxant. It reached English by 1670s-1800s as curare. Entered English through scientific accounts, later used in medicine as a muscle relaxant. Today, curare means a toxic plant extract that causes paralysis, historically used as an arrow poison and later in medicine as a muscle relaxant.

1. Stage 1 · Cariban · pre-1500s kurari "an arrow poison", named the paralyzing plant poison used on hunting arrows.
2. Stage 2 · Spanish/Portuguese · 1670s curare "a paralyzing poison extracted from plants", Walter Raleigh described poison arrows in Guiana in 1596; curare later became a surgical muscle relaxant.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1670s-1800s curare "a plant-derived poison used medically as a muscle relaxant", entered English through scientific accounts, later used in medicine as a muscle relaxant.