haboob

Where does the word "haboob" come from? It comes from Arabic habba, passing through Sudanese Arabic before entering English (1897).

Haboob’s story begins in Arabic: habba meant “to blow strongly.” Meant "to blow" or "to rush". By 1800s, the word had taken hold in Sudanese Arabic as habub. Named the violent dust storms common around Khartoum. It reached English by 1897 as haboob. Entered English through descriptions of Sudanese weather, later applied to similar American dust storms from 1972. Today, haboob means a violent dust or sand storm, especially one common in North Africa, Arabia, and now also the southwestern United States.

1. Stage 1 · Arabic · medieval habba "to blow strongly", meant "to blow" or "to rush".
2. Stage 2 · Sudanese Arabic · 1800s habub "strong wind, dust storm", named the violent dust storms common around Khartoum.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1897 haboob "violent dust or sand storm", entered English through descriptions of Sudanese weather, later applied to similar American dust storms from 1972.