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Where does the word "okra" come from? It comes from Igbo okuru, and was adopted directly into English (1700s).
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Where does the word "okra" come from? It comes from Igbo okuru, and was adopted directly into English (1700s).
Okra’s story begins in Igbo: okuru meant “the okra pod.” The name for the green seed pod eaten as a vegetable across West Africa. It reached English by 1700s as okra. Carried by the Atlantic slave trade into American and Caribbean English. Today, okra means a green seed pod eaten as a vegetable, known for its thickening quality.
- Stage 1 · Igbo · 1600s okuru "the okra pod", the name for the green seed pod eaten as a vegetable across West Africa.
- Stage 2 · English · 1700s okra "a green edible seed pod", carried by the Atlantic slave trade into American and Caribbean English.