Etymology — The origins of English words

From Old English cros, borrowed via Old Norse from Old Irish, ultimately from Latin crux — the same root behind "crucial" and "crux."

Named after the German town of Nassau; the golf-betting sense comes from the Nassau Country Club in New York, where the format was popularized.

From Maasai enkare nyrobi (“cold water, cold river”), the name of the Nairobi river.

The first syllables likely come from Spanish or Portuguese monte ("hill"), referring to a hill overlooking the city.

Borrowed from the Slavic languages.

Named after Marseille, the French port city where the fabric was originally produced.

Named after Mantua, the Italian city once famous for producing this type of silk; the dress style later took the same name.

Named after Manila, the Philippine city, whose own name comes from Tagalog words roughly meaning "where indigo grows."

The U.S. state was named by early French explorers after the French province of Maine, whose own name comes from Old French Cemaine, ultimately from the Gaulish Cenomani tribe.

From French Louisiane, named in honor of King Louis XIV.

From Old English, likely "thick/muddy pool," combining an old word related to "liver" (thick, clotted) with pōl, "pool."

Etymology tree Paleo-Hispanicbor.? Tartessianbor.? Phoeniciander.? Latin Olisīpō Vulgar Latin Olisiponabor. Arabic لِشْبُونَة (lišbūna)bor. French Lisbonnebor. English Lisbon As the capital of Portugal, from French Lisbonne, from Arabic لِشْبُونَة (lišbūna), from Latin Olisīpō, the origin of which is uncertain. Older spellings include Ulixbona and Ulixbuna (in the Visigothic era); Ὀλισσιπών (Olissipṓn) or Ὀλισσιπόνα (Olissipóna) (by Greek writers), Olisippo (by Pliny the Elder), and Ulyssippo (by Pomponius Mela of Hispania), the last of which relates to the first-century Roman folk etymology that it was founded by and named after Ulysses; another common folk etymology is the Phoenician 𐤏𐤋𐤉𐤑 𐤏𐤁𐤀 (ʿlyṣ ʿbʾ /⁠ʿaliṣ-ʿuboʾ⁠/, “safe harbour”), but there is not much evidence for such words. Another possibility, based on hydronymy of the area, derives the name from Paleo-Hispanic's appellation for the Tagus, Lisso or Lucio. In other senses, with reference to the Portuguese city.

From Latin sōlstitium, from sōl ("sun") + sistere ("to stand still") — the point where the sun's path seems to pause.

From "mounted" plus the informal suffix "-ie," originally referring to mounted (horseback) police officers.

From "hall" + "mark," originally the official stamp applied at Goldsmiths' Hall in London to certify precious metals.

From Old English templ, borrowed from Latin templum, "shrine, sacred enclosure." The head-anatomy sense developed separately in Middle English, possibly linked to the pulse felt there.

From Tibetan ལྷ་ས (lha sa), meaning roughly "place of the gods".

From Portuguese Lagos, literally "lakes."

From Russian "Киев" (Kíjev), ultimately tracing back to Old East Slavic; the spelling "Kyiv," based on the Ukrainian form, is now preferred internationally.

Possibly from Arabic خُرْطُوم (ḵurṭūm, “elephant trunk”), but more likely from Arabic قُرْطُم (qurṭum, “safflower”).

From Nepali, ultimately from Sanskrit words meaning "wood" and "pavilion" — a nod to a temple said to have been built from a single tree.

Borrowed from Classical Persian کَابُل (kābul), of unknown origin. See the Persian entry for more.

From Hebrew Yerushalayim, of disputed origin, traditionally linked to "foundation of peace."

The island name passed into English via Javanese, Franco-Italian, and Latin; the informal word for coffee comes from coffee historically grown on and shipped from Java, and the programming language borrowed the coffee name as a playful nod to its "Oak" origins.