Etymologically
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lilac

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˈlaɪlək/; /ˈlaɪlæk/, /ˈlaɪlɑk/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from obsolete French lilac, now lilas,[2][3][4][5] from Arabic ليلك (līlak),[2][4][5] from Persian لیلک (līlak),[3][5] a variant of nīlak “bluish”,[2][3][4][5] from nīl “indigo, blue”,[2][3][4][5] from Sanskrit नील (nīla, “dark blue”).[2][4][5] Etymonline instead derives it from Turkish leylak, noting that the shrub reached Western Europe through Istanbul.[6]

Earliest recorded meaning

The shrub, as lelacke tree (1625).[3][7][4]

Semantic evolution

Etymonline dates the shrub to the 1590s.[6] The form lilac is recorded from 1658.[3] The word became a color name in 1791[7][6] and an adjective, “pale pinkish purple”, in 1801.[3][6][7] It was used of the scent of lilac, as in cosmetics, from 1895.[7][6]

Timeline

Modern meaning

Noun

  1. Any of various shrubs of the olive family, especially the common lilac, grown for its fragrant clusters of purple or white flowers.
  2. A pale to moderate purple color.

Adjective

  1. Of a pale purple color.

Word family

  • Persian lilac
  • anil
  • aniline
  • indigo

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ a b c d e f Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press