penne

Where does the word "penne" come from? It comes from Latin penna, passing through Italian before entering English (1950s).

Penne’s story begins in Latin: penna meant “feather, quill.” A feather or quill, the root of 'pen'. By 1800s, the word had taken hold in Italian as penne. 'quills', plural of 'penna', for the diagonal cut; a Ligurian pasta maker is said to have invented the cutting machine in 1865. It reached English by 1950s as penne. Spread with Italian restaurants and the pasta boom. Today, penne means tubes of pasta cut at a slant.

1. Stage 1 · Latin · ancient penna "feather, quill", a feather or quill, the root of 'pen'.
2. Stage 2 · Italian · 1800s penne "quills", 'quills', plural of 'penna', for the diagonal cut; a Ligurian pasta maker is said to have invented the cutting machine in 1865.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1950s penne "quill-shaped pasta", spread with Italian restaurants and the pasta boom.