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Arabic Words In English

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Fun Trivia : Quizzes : Borrowed Words and Phrases : Arabic Words In English
"The influence of Arabic civilisation on Europe can hardly be underestimated. It left traces in most West- European languages, and English is no exception to this. See what you can identify."


1. Various borrowings from Arabic relate to foodstuffs that were imported after the Crusades. One such foodstuff is an expensive yellow spice that
the Arabs called "zafaran". What does English call it?
    Answer: (Seven letters.)


2. More terms from "cookery". Which of these is not a foodstuff, but refers to the use of an oven?
    tandoori
    tamarind
    tahini
    tabbouleh


3. Various "exotic" fruits (such as lemons, limes, apricots, etc.)found their way to Europe via the Middle- East. Sometimes via Spanish because that was Muslim territory for quite some time. Which name of a fruit did English borrow from Arabic via Spanish naranja ?
    nectarine
    grapefruit
    tangerine
    orange


4. What type of ice cream got its name from an Arabic word for a cold drink the name of which is related to the Arabic word for drinking: shariba ?
    stracciatella
    sherbet
    cassata
    tartuffo


5. Though Muslims are not supposed to drink alcohol the word alcohol (al- kohl) itself comes from Arabic. So does the word for a "still": "alembic" (al-ambicq) and even the popular "julep". Among Arabs a julep was a sweetish non-alcoholic mix with ____________
    mint flavour
    orange-blossom flavour
    rose flavour
    coffee flavour


6. It's not just food-and-drink words that were exported by the Arabs. English also took over the names of some animals. One such an animal is the gazelle ( from "ghaza:l"). Another derives from "zara:fa" and refers to our ___________
    camel
    zebra
    giraffe
    antelope


7. There of course are a lot of "political" words too that were taken over. One of them is "assassin" which referred to a sect of fanatic murderers who called themselves the "h'ashsha:shi:n", which meant:_______________
    hashish eaters
    the guided ones
    holy martyrs
    suicide-bombers


8. Which of these terms refers to Muslim "fighters in a jihad" ?
    mullah
    fedayeen
    mujahedeen
    Hezbollah


9. What is the basic root meaning of Arabic "shaikh" (English sheikh)?
    judge
    little king
    old man
    holy man


10. A notorious term in recent political history was the name Taliban. It came from "talib" which meant: _____________
    soldier of God
    believer
    servant of God
    student


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