monsoon

Where does the word "monsoon" come from? It comes from Arabic mawsim, passing through Portuguese before entering English (1500s-1600s).

Monsoon’s story begins in Arabic: mawsim meant “season, seasonal wind.” Meaning "season", used by Arab sailors for the seasonal winds. By 1500s, the word had taken hold in Portuguese as monção. Arabic 'mawsim', season; Arab and Portuguese sailors timed Indian Ocean voyages by the monsoon winds. It reached English by 1500s-1600s as monsoon. Adapted from Portuguese for the seasonal rains and winds. Today, monsoon means a seasonal wind system, especially bringing heavy rain to South Asia.

1. Stage 1 · Arabic · medieval mawsim "season, seasonal wind", meaning "season", used by Arab sailors for the seasonal winds.
2. Stage 2 · Portuguese · 1500s monção "the seasonal trade wind", Arabic 'mawsim', season; Arab and Portuguese sailors timed Indian Ocean voyages by the monsoon winds.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1500s-1600s monsoon "a seasonal wind bringing heavy rain", adapted from Portuguese for the seasonal rains and winds.