goober

Where does the word "goober" come from? It comes from Kikongo nguba, passing through Gullah before entering English (1833).

Goober’s story begins in Kikongo: nguba meant “peanut.” A Kikongo word for the groundnut, common across west-central Africa. By 1700s, the word had taken hold in Gullah as guber. Brought to the American South by enslaved Kikongo speakers. It reached English by 1833 as goober. Phonetically adapted by white Southerners into everyday American English. Today, goober means an informal American English term, especially in the South, for a peanut.

1. Stage 1 · Kikongo · long-standing nguba "peanut", a Kikongo word for the groundnut, common across west-central Africa.
2. Stage 2 · Gullah · 1700s guber "peanut", brought to the American South by enslaved Kikongo speakers.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1833 goober "a peanut, especially in the American South", phonetically adapted by white Southerners into everyday American English.