tilapia

Where does the word "tilapia" come from? It comes from Tswana tlhapi, passing through English before entering English (1900s).

Tilapia’s story begins in Tswana: tlhapi meant “fish.” A general Setswana word for fish, used across southern Africa. By 1840, the word had taken hold in English as Tilapia. Latinized by Scottish zoologist Andrew Smith when naming the fish genus. It reached English by 1900s as tilapia. Became everyday English as the fish grew into a major global food source. Today, tilapia means a freshwater fish, native to Africa, now widely farmed around the world as an affordable food source.

1. Stage 1 · Tswana · long-standing tlhapi "fish", a general Setswana word for fish, used across southern Africa.
2. Stage 2 · English · 1840 Tilapia "a genus of freshwater fish", Latinized by Scottish zoologist Andrew Smith when naming the fish genus.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1900s tilapia "a farmed freshwater fish popular worldwide as food", became everyday English as the fish grew into a major global food source.