"K" Word Origins

kubernetes

Origin

Borrowed from Ancient Greek κυβερνήτης (kubernḗtēs, “captain, steersman”).

Kubrick

Origin

From Polish kubryk (“ship's forecastle”).

kudo

Origin

Formed by mistakenly treating "kudos" as if it were a plural noun ending in -s, and back-forming a singular "kudo" from it.

kudos

Ancient Greek

A learned borrowing from Ancient Greek κῦδος (kûdos), meaning "glory" or "renown."

kudu

Origin

Ultimately Khoekhoe kudu-b, through Afrikaans koedoe and French koudou.

Kuk

Origin

From a word meaning "river" in an Inuit language.

kuku

Persian

Borrowed from Persian کوکو (kuku).

Kumar

Origin

Transliteration of Hindi कुमार (kumār), etc.

kumbaya

Origin

From the Gullah spiritual "Kumbaya," itself believed to be a rendering of the English phrase "come by here."

Kumiko

Japanese

Transliteration of Japanese 駒実子 (Kumiko) and many other spellings. See くみこ.

kumkum

Origin

From Hindi कुमकुम (kumkum) from Sanskrit कुङ्कुम (kuṅkuma).

kun

Japanese

From Japanese 訓読み (kun'yomi), literally "meaning reading."

Kunal

Sanskrit

Borrowed from Sanskrit कुणाल (kuṇāla).

Kuni

Japanese

Borrowed from Japanese 国 (Kuni), 久邇 (Kuni) or くに (Kuni).

Kuo

Origin

From Mandarin 郭 (Guō). Doublet of Guo and Kwok.

kurd

Origin

Attested in English since roughly 1600, from Kurdish کورد (kurd) and Classical Persian کُرْد (kurd), from Middle Persian [Book Pahlavi needed] (gurd /⁠kurd⁠/), ultimately of unknown origin. More at Kurds.

Kurdish

Turkish

From "Kurd" plus the suffix "-ish," which marks nationality or language, as in "English" or "Turkish."

Kurdistan

Persian

From "Kurd" plus the Persian-derived suffix "-istan," meaning "land of."

Kure

Japanese

From Japanese 呉 (Kure).

Kuroda

Japanese

Borrowed from Japanese 黒田 (Kuroda).

Kurokawa

Japanese

Borrowed from Japanese 黒川 (Kurokawa).

Kuroki

Japanese

Borrowed from Japanese 黒木(くろき) (Kuroki). The hamlet is named for general Kuroki Tamemoto, and was founded during the Russo-Japanese war.

Kurosawa

Japanese

Borrowed from Japanese 黒沢 (Kurosawa).

Kursk

Origin

Named after the Kur River.

Kurt

German

From German Kurt.

kuru

Origin

From Fore kúru (literally “trembling, shivering”). Perhaps eventually from Proto-Gorokan *kút(V) (“dangling, shaking”) if cognate with the reduplicated element of Yagaria gúli gúli hu- (“be loose, rattle”).

kush

Origin

Shortened from "Hindu Kush," the mountain range where the original cannabis strain is said to have originated.

kusum

Sanskrit

Borrowed from Sanskrit kusuma, meaning "flower."

kuya

Chinese

From Tagalog kuya, ultimately from a Hokkien Chinese term for an elder brother.

kvetch

Origin

From Yiddish קוועטשן (kvetshn, literally “to squeeze, pinch”), from Middle High German quetschen (“crush, press”).

Kwak

Origin

From the Korean surname, from 곽 (gwak). More at Kwak. Borrowed also from Polish Kwak.

kwangchow

Origin

Borrowed from Mandarin 廣州／广州 (Guǎngzhōu).

Kwanzaa

Swahili · 1966

Coined in 1966 by activist Maulana Karenga from the Swahili phrase "matunda ya kwanza," meaning "first fruits"; an extra "a" was added so the word would have seven letters, matching Kwanzaa's seven guiding principles.

Kwok

Origin

From Cantonese 郭 (gwok³). Doublet of Guo and Kuo.

Kwon

Chinese

From Chinese 關 /关 (guān), via various dialects.

Kwong

Origin

Borrowed from Cantonese 鄺／邝 (kwong3).

Ky

Origin

Clipping of Kylie, Kylee, or Kyleigh.

Kyla

Origin

Modern invention that can be explained as a feminine form of Kyle with -a.

Kyle

Scottish Gaelic

From Scottish Gaelic caol, meaning "narrows" or "strait," referring to a narrow channel of water.

Kylie

Origin

Uncertain origin, possibly linked to the Aboriginal Australian word for "boomerang"; the given name is unrelated to "Kyle" despite the resemblance.

kylix

Origin

Borrowed from Ancient Greek κύλιξ (kúlix, “cup”).

Kyoko

Japanese

Borrowed from Japanese きょうこ (Kyōko).

Kyoto

Japanese

From Japanese 京都 (Kyōto), literally "capital city."

kyphosis

Origin

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek κύφωσις (kúphōsis).

Kyra

Origin

Name of a Greek Orthodox saint, from Byzantine Greek κυρά (kurá, “lady”), or from Cyra, feminine form of Cyrus. The English name may also be a variant of Keira.

kyu

Japanese

From Japanese 級 (kyū), meaning "grade" or "class."

Kyushu

Japanese

From Japanese 九州 (Kyūshū), literally "nine provinces," reflecting the island's historical division into nine regions.