English words from Occitan
5 English words with Occitan in their history, whether borrowed directly or passed on through other languages.
charade
It is borrowed from French charade, probably from Occitan charrado (“chat, chatter”), from charrá “to chat”, which is of imitative origin. The American Heritage Dictionary suggests a link with…
cocoon
It is borrowed from French cocon, from Occitan coucoun (“eggshell”), a diminutive of coco “shell”, probably from Latin coccum (“berry, oak gall, kermes”), from Ancient Greek κόκκος (kókkos, “seed…
funnel
It is inherited from Middle English fonel, also funell, borrowed from Old Occitan fonilh, probably through an unrecorded Old French *founil, from Late Latin fundibulum, a shortening of īnfundibulum…
league
1. The distance is inherited from Middle English lege, also leuge, borrowed from Old Occitan lega or Old French legue and directly Late Latin leuga, leuca, which Roman writers say is from Gaulish…
mascot
It is borrowed from French mascotte (“sorcerer's charm, good-luck piece”), from Occitan mascoto (“sorcery, charm”), from masco “witch”, probably from Medieval Latin masca (“mask, spectre, witch”).