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    From what Italian word for a "little borough" did we get a word for that quarter of a town where mostly people of the same race, religion or social background live?

    Question #103108. Asked by flem-ish. (Feb 18 09 1:39 AM)


    davejacobs

    		Ghetto: ORIGIN perhaps from Italian getto ‘foundry’ (because the first ghetto was established on the site of a foundry in Venice), or from Italian borghetto ‘small borough’
    http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/ghetto?view=uk

    Feb 18 09, 1:51 AM
    author

    		The term 'ghetto' was originally used to refer to the Venetian Ghetto in Venice, Italy where Jews were forced to live. The word "ghetto" actually means "foundry" in Venetian dialect, used in this sense in a reference to a foundry located on the same island as the area of Jewish confinement.[2] An alternative etymology is from Italian borghetto, diminutive of borgo ‘borough’.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghetto

    Feb 18 09, 11:12 AM

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