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paisley

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Etymology and origin of the English word paisley

Confidence
Established
Formation
Eponym
First attested
1790 Burns, Tam o' Shanter

Pronunciation

Etymology

It is named after Paisley, a town in Renfrewshire in south-western Scotland,[2][3][4][5][6][7][8] famous for its textiles and, in the 19th century, especially for patterned shawls inspired by those imported from Kashmir.[2] The town name means "(place with a) church"; it is recorded from 1161 and comes from Middle Irish baslec (“church”), from Latin basilica.[9][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Used attributively, of a garment or fabric made in Paisley: 1790, in Burns's Tam o' Shanter.[2][6] Barnhart and Etymonline date the noun to 1834.[5][3]

Semantic evolution

At first the word only named goods made in Paisley; later it described anything decorated with the patterns typical of them.[2] The large, richly patterned Paisley shawl, woven or printed with designs based on Kashmir shawls, is recorded from 1823, and paisley alone could mean such a shawl by 1849, a sense now chiefly historical.[2] By 1898 the word was used for any fabric with a paisley pattern,[2] and Barnhart dates the adjective to 1900.[5] From 1913 it named the pattern itself, made up of ornate figures shaped like teardrops or feathers, based on a traditional Indian or Persian design.[2]

Timeline

  • 1790 – designating a garment or fabric made in Paisley.[2][6]
  • 1823 – the Paisley shawl.[2]
  • 1834 – noun, a cloth with an elaborate, colourful pattern.[5][3]
  • 1849 – a paisley shawl.[2]
  • 1898 – any fabric with a paisley pattern.[2]
  • 1900 – adjective, made of paisley.[5]
  • 1913 – the pattern of curved teardrop- or feather-shaped figures.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. A pattern of curved, intricately detailed figures shaped like teardrops or feathers, usually in bright colours.[8][2][6]
  2. A soft fine woollen fabric printed or woven with this pattern.[8][6][2]
  3. A garment made of this fabric, especially a shawl.[8][6][2]

Adjective

  1. Made of paisley or marked with its pattern: a paisley tie.[6][8][2]

Usage notes

The word is often capitalized, and the OED enters it as Paisley.[6][2]

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  5. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
  8. ^ a b c d e Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
  9. ^ Mills, A. D.; Room, Adrian (2002), "A Dictionary of British Place-Names", in The Oxford Names Companion, Oxford: Oxford University Press
Cite this entry

“Paisley.” Etymologically, 31 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/paisley. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

Last edited on . ·