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Kwashiorkor

2 stages from Ga to English.

Today it means A severe form of childhood malnutrition caused by protein deficiency, marked by swelling, skin changes, and stunted growth.

Where does the word "kwashiorkor" come from? It comes from Ga kwashiorkor, adopted directly into English (1935).

kwashiorkor→kwashiorkor

Ga · pre-1900s

"the disease of the deposed child"

described the sickness an older child develops when displaced from the breast by a new baby

English · 1935

"a severe protein-deficiency disease in children"

introduced to medical English by pediatrician Cicely Williams studying childhood malnutrition in Ghana

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