taiko

Where does the word "taiko" come from? It comes from Japanese taiko, and was adopted directly into English (1950s-1960s).

Taiko’s story begins in Japanese: taiko meant “a drum, especially a large barrel-shaped one.” The general word for drum, later specialized for large ensemble performance drums. It reached English by 1950s-1960s as taiko. Borrowed as Japanese-American drumming ensembles popularized the art form in the US. Today, taiko means large Japanese drums, or the ensemble drumming performance style built around them.

1. Stage 1 · Japanese · ancient taiko "a drum, especially a large barrel-shaped one", the general word for drum, later specialized for large ensemble performance drums.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1950s-1960s taiko "large Japanese ensemble drumming or the drums used in it", borrowed as Japanese-American drumming ensembles popularized the art form in the US.