cashmere English · revision 1919

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈkæʃ.mɪə/, /kæʃˈmɪə/ ''(UK)''; /kæʒˈmiɹ/, /ˈkæʒ.miɹ/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is named after [[Cashmere]], an older spelling of [[Kashmir]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) the Himalayan region where the wool was obtained from long-haired goats.^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ A shawl made of cashmere wool (1684).^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The shawl sense came first;^(Barnhart 1995) Etymonline dates it to 1822 and the material to 1839, as short for ''Cashmere wool''.^(Etymonline) The name was also applied to woollen fabric made in France and England in imitation of the real thing (1822).^(OED 1989) Today it means chiefly the fine wool itself and soft fabrics or yarns made from it.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU) Random House dates the word to 1815–25.^(RHWU)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1684 – a cashmere shawl (Barnhart, Merriam-Webster).^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1822 – an imitation woollen fabric, and a shawl in Etymonline.^(OED 1989)^(Etymonline)

+ * 1839 – the fabric, short for ''Cashmere wool''.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # Fine, soft [[wool]] from the undercoat of the cashmere [[goat]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A soft fabric or yarn made of this wool or a similar fiber.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+ # A garment, especially a shawl, made of cashmere.^(RHWU)^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[Kashmir]]

+ * [[kerseymere]]

+ * [[pashmina]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}