Vol. 09 · Loanwords ·Arabic ·1300s
Azimuth
from al-sumūt
- Meaning
- The horizontal angle of a compass bearing.
- Source word
- al-sumūt
- Route into English
- Plural of Arabic *as-samt* (direction) → Medieval Latin *azimut* → Old French → English. A navigational and astronomical term from the same root as *zenith*.
- Arrived
- 1300s
From Arabic
Science, trade, and the Mediterranean transit of Andalusian scholarship gave English its Arabic stratum — especially in maths, chemistry, and commerce. Many entered through Latin or Italian.
English borrows.
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