Etymology Map
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Kumpir

4 stages from German to English.

Today it means a large baked potato stuffed with butter, cheese and many toppings

Where does the word "kumpir" come from? It comes from German Grundbirne, passing through Croatian and Turkish before entering English (2000s).

1
Stage 1 of 4
Grundbirne
German · 1600s
"potato"
'ground pear', an old southern German name for the potato
2
Stage 2 of 4
krumpir
Croatian · 1700s
"potato"
Habsburg rule brought the potato and its German name to the Balkans
3
Stage 3 of 4
kumpir
Turkish · 1900s
"stuffed baked potato"
Balkan immigrants brought the word to Turkey; stuffed kumpir became the famous street food of Istanbul's Ortaköy
4
Stage 4 of 4
kumpir
English · 2000s
"stuffed baked potato"
entered English through Turkish street food stalls
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Read the full story

Kumpir’s story begins in German: Grundbirne meant “potato.” 'ground pear', an old southern German name for the potato. By 1700s, the word had taken hold in Croatian as krumpir. Habsburg rule brought the potato and its German name to the Balkans. From there it passed into Turkish as kumpir by 1900s. Balkan immigrants brought the word to Turkey; stuffed kumpir became the famous street food of Istanbul's Ortaköy. It reached English by 2000s as kumpir. Entered English through Turkish street food stalls. Today, kumpir means a large baked potato stuffed with butter, cheese and many toppings.