giraffe English · revision 1894

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /dʒɪˈɹɑːf/ ''(UK)''; /d͡ʒəˈɹæf/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ The modern form is [[bor|fr|girafe]],^(AHD)^(Etymonline)^(RHWU) [[der|it|giraffa]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) [[der|ar|زرافة|tr=zarāfa]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) probably of African origin.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) Random House suggests instead a Persian source.^(RHWU) Earlier English forms such as ''jarraf'' and ''ziraph'' came directly from Arabic,^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) while Middle English ''gerfaunt'' was apparently influenced by ''olifaunt'' “elephant”.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ Middle English ''gerfauntz'' appears about 1400 in Mandeville's Travels.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) The word ''giraffa'' for the African animal is recorded in 1594.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The spelling varied widely according to the language it was taken from;^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) the modern form, through French, is attested by about 1600.^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate) It replaced the older name [[camelopard]].^(Etymonline) The name was also given to the constellation Camelopardalis (1836)^(OED 1989)^(RHWU) and to a kind of upright spinet (1876).^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * about 1400 – ''gerfauntz''.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1594 – ''giraffa'', the animal.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+ * c. 1600 – the modern form.^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1836 – the constellation.^(OED 1989)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A tall African [[ruminant]] with a very long neck and legs and a coat with dark blotches; the tallest living land animal.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # ''(capitalized)'' The constellation [[Camelopardalis]].^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[giraffish]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[camelopard]]

+ * [[okapi]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}