ebru

Where does the word "ebru" come from? It comes from Persian ābrū, passing through Ottoman Turkish before entering English (1900s).

Ebru’s story begins in Persian: ābrū meant “water surface, cloudy.” Perhaps 'face of water', or 'cloud-like', for the swirling patterns. By 1500s, the word had taken hold in Ottoman Turkish as ebru. Calligraphers used marbled sheets for book covers and borders; Europeans called imports 'Turkish paper'. It reached English by 1900s as ebru. UNESCO listed Turkish ebru as intangible heritage in 2014. Today, ebru means the Turkish art of marbling paper by floating colours on water.

1. Stage 1 · Persian · medieval ābrū "water surface, cloudy", perhaps 'face of water', or 'cloud-like', for the swirling patterns.
2. Stage 2 · Ottoman Turkish · 1500s ebru "marbled paper", calligraphers used marbled sheets for book covers and borders; Europeans called imports 'Turkish paper'.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1900s ebru "paper marbling", UNESCO listed Turkish ebru as intangible heritage in 2014.