okapi

Where does the word "okapi" come from? It comes from Mbuti okapi, and was adopted directly into English (1900s).

Okapi’s story begins in Mbuti: okapi meant “okapi.” The Congolese name for the forest-dwelling relative of the giraffe. It reached English by 1900s as okapi. Harry Johnston obtained okapi skin in the Congo in 1900; its existence surprised zoologists. Today, okapi means a forest-dwelling mammal related to the giraffe, native to the Congo Basin.

1. Stage 1 · Mbuti · ancient okapi "okapi", the Congolese name for the forest-dwelling relative of the giraffe.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1900s okapi "a forest-dwelling relative of the giraffe", Harry Johnston obtained okapi skin in the Congo in 1900; its existence surprised zoologists.