Online Etymology Dictionary

European: c.1600, from L. Europa "Europe," from Gk. Europe, often explained as "broad face," from eurys "wide" + ops "face." Klein suggests a possible Semitic origin in Akkad. erebu "to go down, set" (in reference to the sun) which would parallel orient (q.v.). Another suggestion along those lines is Phoenician 'ereb "evening," hence "west."
Hallstatt: 1866, Iron Age civilization of Europe, from the name of a village in Upper Austria, where implements from this period were found.
sunflower: 1562, "heliotrope;" in ref. to the helianthus (introduced to Europe 1510 from America by the Spaniards) it is attested from 1597.
steppe: vast treeless plain of southeastern Europe and of Asia, 1671, from Rus. *step', of unknown origin.
chub: "river fish," c.1450, chubbe, of unknown origin. In Europe, a kind of carp; in U.S., the black bass.
cantaloupe: 1739, from It. Cantalupo, former Papal summer estate, near Rome, where melons were first grown in Europe after introduction, supposedly, from Armenia.
zebu: Asiatic ox, 1774, from Fr. zebu, ult. of Tibetan origin. First shown in Europe at the Paris fair of 1752.
gothic: "of the Goths," Gmc. people who lived in Eastern Europe c. 100 A.D. (O.E. Gota, L.L. Goth, Gk. Gothoi), from Goth. gutþiuda "Gothic people," the first element cognate with O.N. gotar "men." "The sense 'men' is usually taken to be the secondary one, but as the etymology of the word is unknown, this is uncertain" [Gordon]. The unhistorical -th- in Eng. is from L.L. Used in sense of "savage despoiler" (1663) in reference to their sack of Roman cities, 5c. (see vandal). Gothic was used by scholars to mean "Germanic, Teutonic" (1647), hence its evolution as a term for the art style that emerged in northern Europe in the Middle Ages, and the early 19c. literary style that used medieval settings to suggest horror and mystery. The word was revived 1983 as the name for a style of music and the associated youth culture; abbreviated form goth is attested from 1986. Gothic revival in reference to architecture and decorating first recorded 1869 in writing of C.L. Eastlake.
hep (2): cry of those leading pogroms or attacks on Jews in Europe, 1839 (but in ref. to the riots of 1819 in Hamburg, etc.), perhaps the cry of a goatherd, or of a hunter urging on dogs, but popularly said to be acronym of L. Hierosolyma Est Perdita "Jerusalem is destroyed."
cochineal: 1580s, from Fr. cochenille, from Sp. cochinilla "wood louse," or It. cocciniglia, from Mod.L. coccinum "scarlet robe," coccineus "scarlet-colored," from coccum "scarlet," lit. "grain, berry." Coccum is cognate with Gk. kokkos, which had the same senses. The crushed insect dye was once wrongly supposed to be from the grain or berry of a plant. The insect lives on plants in Mexico and Central America. Aztecs and other Mexican Indians used it as a dyestuff; it first is mentioned in Europe in 1523 in Sp. correspondence to Hernán Cortés in Mexico. Specimens were brought to Spain in the 1520s, and cloth merchants in Antwerp were buying cochineal in insect and powdered form in Spain by the 1540s. Replaced the kermes insect as a source of red dye in Europe. So important was this source of scarlet dye that derivatives of the name for it have displaced the original word for "red" in many languages, e.g. Welsh coch, Mod.Gk. kokkinos. Cf. also crimson, vermilion.
sitzkrieg: 1940, "static warfare" (such as prevailed in Europe in the winter of 1939-40), R.A.F. coinage on analogy of blitzkrieg (q.v.), from Ger. sitz "a sitting."
orange: c.1300, from O.Fr. orenge (12c.), from M.L. pomum de orenge, from It. arancia, originally narancia (Venetian naranza), alt. of Arabic naranj, from Pers. narang, from Skt. naranga-s "orange tree," of uncertain origin. Loss of initial n- probably due to confusion with definite article (e.g. une narange, una narancia), but perhaps infl. by Fr. or "gold." The tree's original range probably was northern India. The Persian orange, grown widely in southern Europe after its introduction in Italy 11c., was bitter; sweet oranges were brought to Europe 15c. from India by Portuguese traders and quickly displaced the bitter variety, but only Mod.Gk. still seems to distinguish the bitter (nerantzi) from the sweet (portokali "Portuguese") orange. Portuguese, Spanish, Arab, and Dutch sailors planted citrus trees along trade routes to prevent scurvy. On his second voyage in 1493, Christopher Columbus brought the seeds of oranges, lemons and citrons to Haiti and the Caribbean. Introduced in Florida (along with lemons) in 1513 by Sp. explorer Juan Ponce de Leon. Introduced to Hawaii 1792. Not used as the name of a color until 1542.
Bohunk: 1903, U.S. derogatory slang for "lower class immigrant from Central or Eastern Europe," probably from Bohemian + a distortion of Hungarian.
Carpathian: mountain range of Eastern Europe, from Thracian Gk. Karpates oros, lit. "Rocky Mountain;" related to Albanian karpe "rock."
Arimasp: L. Arimaspi (pl.), from Gk. Arimaspoi, mythical race of one-eyed people in Northern Europe who battled griffins over gold the griffins guarded. The name is said to be Scythain for "one-eyed."
Heinie: "a German," especially a Ger. soldier," 1904, N.Amer. slang, from pet form of common Ger. male proper name Heinrich (see Henry). Brought to Europe in World War I by Canadian soldiers (British soldiers called the adversary Fritz).
mah-jongg: 1922, from dial. Chinese (Shanghai) ma chiang, name of the game, lit. "sparrows," from ma "hemp" + chaing "little birds." The game so called from the design of the pieces. It had a vogue in Europe in the 1920s and for a time threatened to supplant bridge in popularity.
buckram: 1222, from O.Fr. bouquerant, probably from Bukhara, city in central Asia from which it was imported to Europe. Originally a delicate, costly fabric, it later came to mean coarse linen used for lining. The -m in the Eng. word may indicate It. origin (cf. It. bucherame, 14c.).
khan: c.1400, from Turk., lit. "lord, prince," contraction of khaqan "ruler, sovereign." Known in Europe since 13c., cf. L. chanis, Gk. kanes, O.Fr. chan.
Caucasus: mountain range between Europe and the Middle East, from Gk. kaukhasis, said by Pliny ("Natural History," book six, chap. XVII) to be from a Scythian word similar to kroy-khasis, lit. "(the mountain) ice-shining, white with snow." But possibly from a Pelasgian root *kau- meaning "mountain."
genocide: 1944, apparently coined by Polish-born U.S. jurist Raphael Lemkin in his work "Axis Rule in Occupied Europe" [p.19], in reference to Nazi extermination of Jews, lit. "killing a tribe," from Gk. genos "race, kind" (see genus) + -cide. The proper formation would be *genticide.
shtetl: small Jewish town or village in Eastern Europe, 1949, from Yiddish, lit. "little town," from dim. of Ger. Stadt "city, town," from O.H.G. stat "place," from PIE base *sta- "to stand" (see stet).
chorea: 1806, from Mod.L. chorea Sancti Viti "St. Vitus dance" (originally a mass hysteria in 15c. Europe characterized by uncontrolled dancing; extension to the nerve disorder is from 1621), from L. chorea, from Gk. khoreia "dance."
Shiraz: wine made in the district of Shiraz, a city in Persia, 1634. As the name for a red wine made from a type of grape grown in the Rhône valley of France, it is recorded from 1908, from Fr. syrah,the name apparently altered in Eng. on mistaken notion that the grape was brought to Europe from the Middle East by Crusaders.
Carboniferous: the geological period (1830) is from a word formed in Eng. 1799 from L. carbo (gen. carbonis) "coal" (see carbon) + -ferous "producing, containing." The great coal beds of Europe were laid down during this period.
gibbon: 1770, from Fr., supposedly from a word in the Fr. colonies of India but not found in any language there. Brought to Europe by Marquis Joseph-François Dupleix (1697-1763), Fr. governor general in India, 1742-54. The surname is O.Fr. Giboin, from Frank. *Geba-win "gift-friend," or in some cases a dim. of Gibb, itself a familiar form of Gilbert.
maroon (n.): 1594, "large sweet chestnut of southern Europe," from Fr. marron "chestnut," from dialect of Lyons, ult. from a word in a pre-Roman language, perhaps Ligurian; or from Gk. maraon "sweet chestnut." Sense of "very dark reddish-brown color" is first recorded 1791, from Fr. couleur marron.
red (2): "Bolshevik," 1917, from red (1), the color they adopted for themselves. Association in Europe of red with revolutionary politics (on notion of blood and violence) is from at least 1297, but got a boost 1793 with adoption of the red Phrygian cap (Fr. bonnet rouge) as symbol of the Fr. Revolution. First specific political reference in Eng. was 1848 (adj.), in news reports of the Second French Republic (a.k.a. Red Republic). The noun meaning "radical, communist" is from 1851.
Thalidomide: 1958, from "phthalimidoglutarimide," based on abbreviated form of naphthalene; a morning-sickness drug responsible for severe birth defects in Europe from 1956 to 1961, when it was withdrawn. It was never approved for use in America thanks to the efforts of Dr. Helen Brooke Taussig. Thalidomide baby is attested from 1962.
Iron Curtain: in ref. to the Soviet occupation of Eastern Europe, famously coined by Churchill March 5, 1946, in speech at Westminster College, Fulton, Missouri, but it had been used earlier in this context (e.g. by U.S. bureaucrat Allen W. Dulles at a meeting of the Council on Foreign Relations, Dec. 3, 1945). The fig. sense of "impenetrable barrier" is attested from 1819, and the specific sense of "barrier at the edge of the sphere of influence of the Soviet Union" is recorded from 1920. During World War II, Goebbels used in in Ger. (ein eiserner Vorhang) in the same sense.
Eurasian: 1844, from Eur(opean) + Asian. Originally of children of British-East Indian marriages; sense of "of Europe and Asia considered as one continent" is from 1868. Eurafrican, similarly formed, was coined 1890 by anthropologist D.G. Brinton to designate a "race" of dark-skinned people inhabiting both sides of the Mediterranean; it was used 1920s to describe the "colored" population of S.Africa, and 1960s with ref. to political situations involving both continents.
hussar: 1532, from Ger. Husar, from Hungarian huszar "light horseman," originally "freebooter," from O.Serb. husar, var. of kursar "pirate," from It. corsaro (see corsair). Bodies of light horsemen organized in Hungary late 15c., widely imitated elsewhere in Europe.
turban: 1561, from M.Fr. turbant, from It. turbante (O.It. tolipante), from Turk. tülbent "gauze, muslin, tulle," from Pers. dulband "turban." The change of -l- to -r- may have taken place in Portuguese India and thence been picked up in other European languages. A men's headdress in Muslim lands, it was popular in Europe and America c.1776-1800 as a ladies' fashion.
oriole: 1776, from Fr. oriol, O.Prov. auriol, from L. aureolus "golden," from PIE *aus- "gold." Originally in ref. to the Golden Oriole (Oriolus galbula), a bird of black and yellow plumage that summers in Europe (but is uncommon in England). Applied from 1791 to the unrelated but similarly colored Amer. species Icterus baltimore.
midsummer: O.E. midsumor, from mid "mid" + sumor "summer." Midsummer Day, as an English quarter-day, was June 24. Astronomically June 21, but traditionally reckoned in Europe on the night of June 23-24.
lima bean: 1756, assoc. with Lima, Peru, from which region the plant (Phaseolus lunatus) was introduced to Europe c.1500. The city name is corrupted from Quechua (Inca) rimac, name of a god and his temple, from rima "to speak" (probably a reference to priests who spoke from concealed places in statues of the gods). Among the earliest New World crops to be known in the Old World, Simmonds' "Dictionary of Trade" (1858) describes it as "esteemed," but it has the consistency of a diseased dog kidney.
Hun: O.E., tribe from central Asia that overran Europe in the 4c. and 5c. (esp. under their king Attila, called Flagellum Dei "The Scourge of God"), from M.L. Hunni, apparently ult. from Turkic Hun-yü, the name of a tribe (they were known in China as Han or Hiong-nu). Fig. sense of "reckless destroyer of beauty" is from 1806. Applied to the German in World War I by their enemies because of stories of atrocities, but the nickname originally was urged on Ger. soldiers bound for China by Kaiser Wilhelm II in 1900, which caused a scandal.
mermaid: late 14c., mermayde, lit. "maid of the sea," from M.E. mere "sea, lake" (see mere (n.)) + maid (q.v.). O.E. had equivalent merewif (see wife). Tail-less in northern Europe; the fishy form is a medieval influence from classical sirens. A favorite sign of taverns since at least 1428. Merman is a later formation (1601).
oregano: 1771, from Sp./Sp. Amer. oregano, from L. origanus, origanum, from Gk. oreiganon, from oros "mountain" (see oread) + ganos "brightness, ornament." The older form of the word in Eng. was the L.-derived origanum (c.1265), also origan (c.1420). In Europe, the dried leaves of wild marjoram; in America, a different, and more pungent, shrub.
influenza: 1743, borrowed during an outbreak of the disease in Europe, from It. influenza "influenza, epidemic," originally "visitation, influence (of the stars)," from M.L. influentia (see influence). Used in It. for diseases since at least 1504 (cf. influenza di febbre scarlattina "scarlet fever") on notion of astral or occult influence. The 1743 outbreak began in Italy. Often applied since mid-19c. to severe colds.
crocus: late 14c., from L. crocus, from Gk. krokos "saffron, crocus," probably of Semitic origin (cf. Arabic kurkum), ult. from Skt. kunkumam. The autumnal crocus (Crocus sativa) was a common source of yellow dye in Roman times, and was perhaps grown in England, where the word existed as O.E. croh, but this form of the word was forgotten by the time the plant was re-introduced in Western Europe by the Crusaders.
Romanesque: 1715, originally "descended from Latin" (cf. romance), later "architectural style in Europe between Roman and Gothic periods" (1819), from Roman (q.v.), influenced by Fr. romanesque, from L.L. Romanice "in Vulgar Latin" (see romance).
hamster: 1607, from Ger. Hamster, from M.H.G. hamastra "hamster," probably from O.C.S. chomestoru "hamster" (the animal is native to S.E. Europe), perhaps a blend of Rus. chomiak and Lith. staras, both meaning "hamster." The older Eng. name for it was German rat.
xanthous: 1829, from Gk. xanthos "yellow," of unknown origin. Prefix form xantho- is used in many scientific words; cf. xanthein (1857) "soluble yellow coloring matter in flowers," Huxley's Xanthochroi (1867) "blond, light-skinned races of Europe" (with okhros "pale"), xanthophyll (1838) "yellow coloring matter in autumn leaves."
assassin: 1530s (in Anglo-L. from mid-13c.), via Fr. and It., from Arabic hashishiyyin "hashish-users," pl. of hashishiyy, from hashish (q.v.). A fanatical Ismaili Muslim sect of the time of the Crusades, under leadership of the "Old Man of the Mountains" (translates Arabic shaik-al-jibal, name applied to Hasan ibu-al-Sabbah), with a reputation for murdering opposing leaders after intoxicating themselves by eating hashish. The pl. suffix -in was mistaken in Europe for part of the word (cf. Bedouin).
victory: early 14c., from O.Fr. victorie, from L. victoria, from pp. stem of vincere (see victor). V.E. ("victory in Europe") and V.J. ("victory in Japan") days in WWII were first used Sept. 2, 1944, by James F. Byrne, U.S. director of War Mobilization. Victorious is attested from late 14c., from L.L. victoriosus "having many victories," from victoria.
Black Death: "bubonic/pneumonic plague epidemic of 1347-51 in Europe," a modern name, introduced in English 1823 by Elizabeth Penrose's history of England. The contemporary name for it in most languages was something like "the great dying" or simply "the plague" (or, after its return, "the first pestilence"). The term "Black Death" first turns up in 16c. Swed. and Dan. chronicles, but in reference to a visitation of plague in Iceland in 1402-3 that carried off much of the population there (which had been spared in the earlier outbreak). The exact sense of "black" is not clear. The term appears in English translations of the Scandinavian works from 1750s, and it was picked up in German c.1770 and applied to the earlier outbreak, and taken from there into English.
Arabic (adj.): c.1500, from O.Fr. Arabic (13c.), from L. Arabicus "Arabic" (see Arab). Originally in ref. to gum arabic. Arabic numerals (actually Indian) first attested 1727; they were introduced in Europe by Gerbert of Aurillac (later Pope Sylvester II) after a visit to Islamic Spain in 967-970. A prominent man of science, he taught in the diocesan school at Reims, but the numbers made little headway against conservative opposition in the Church until after the Crusades. The earliest depiction of them in Eng., in "The Crafte of Nombrynge" (c.1350) correctly identifies them as "teen figurys of Inde."
cipher: 1399, from M.L. cifra, from Arabic sifr "zero," lit. "empty, nothing," from safara "to be empty," loan-transl. of Skt. sunya-s "empty." Came to Europe with Arabic numerals. Original meaning "zero," then "any numeral," then (first in Fr. and It.) "coded message" (first attested in Eng. 1528), since early codes often substituted numbers for letters. The verb meaning "to do arithmetic (with Arabic numerals) first attested 1530.
kike: derogatory slang for "Jew," 1904, perhaps originating among Ger.-American Jews in reference to newcomers from Eastern Europe, whose names ended in -ki or -ky. Philip Cowen, first editor of "The American Hebrew," suggests a source in Yiddish kikel "circle." According to him, Jewish immigrants, ignorant of writing with the Latin alphabet, signed their entry forms with a circle, eschewing the "X" as a sign of Christianity. Ellis Island immigration inspectors began calling such people kikels, and the term shortened as it passed into general use.