lagniappe

Pronunciation

• IPA: /lænˈjæp/, /ˈlænjæp/^[1]

Etymology

It is a Louisiana French spelling^[2][3][4] of American Spanish la ñapa “the gift, the addition”,^[2][5][3][4] from ñapa, yapa,^[3][4] from Quechua yapa (“something added”),^[2][3][4][5] from yapay “to give more”.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A small gift given by a shopkeeper to a customer with a purchase (1844 in Merriam-Webster; 1849 in the OED and Etymonline).^[3][6][5]

Semantic evolution

The word entered the Creole speech of New Orleans^[2][5] and is still used chiefly in southern Louisiana for a little extra that a shopkeeper adds to a purchase.^[2][4] Mark Twain, in Life on the Mississippi (1883), called it a word worth travelling to New Orleans to get.^[5] By extension it means any extra or unexpected benefit,^[2][4][1] or a tip.^[4]

Timeline

• 1844 – first recorded (Merriam-Webster).^[3]
• 1849 – something given over and above a purchase.^[6][5]
• 1883 – praised by Mark Twain.^[5]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. (chiefly southern Louisiana) A small gift given to a customer with a purchase.
2. An extra or unexpected gift or benefit.
3. A gratuity or tip.

Related words

• bonus
• baker's dozen

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e f Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d e f g Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
5. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
6. ^ a b Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press