river in ancient Palestine; the crossing of it is symbolic of death in high-flown language as a reference to Numbers xxxiii.51. Also a type of pot or vessel (late 14c.), especially a chamber-pot, but the sense there is unknown. The modern nation-state dates to 1921. Related: Jordanian.

kernel of the fruit of the almond tree, c. 1300, from Old French almande, amande, earlier alemondle "almond," from Vulgar Latin *amendla, *amandula, from Latin amygdala (plural), from Greek amygdalos "an almond tree," a word of unknown origin, perhaps from Semitic. Late Old English had amygdales "almonds."

It was altered in Medieval Latin by influence of amandus "loveable." In French it acquired an unetymological -l-, perhaps from Spanish almendra "almond," which got it by influence of the many Spanish words beginning with the Arabic definite article al-. Perhaps through similar confusion, Italian has dropped the first letter entirely (mandorla). As an adjective, applied to eyes shaped like almonds, especially of certain Asiatic peoples, from 1849.

in reference to the former Jordanian territory west of the River Jordan, 1967.

Italian almond-flavored liqueur, 1945 (the original brand, Amaretto di Saronno, dates to 1851), from the Italian word for almond (q.v.), which did not acquire the unetymological -l- of its English cousin. It is sometimes confused with amoretto. Amoroso (literally "lover") as the name of a type of sweetened sherry is attested from c. 1870.

part of the brain, from Latin amygdalum "almond" (which the brain parts resemble), from Greek amygdalē "almond" (see almond). English had also amygdales "the tonsils" (early 15c.), from a secondary sense of the Latin word in Medieval Latin, a translation of Arabic al-lauzatani "the two tonsils," literally "the two almonds," so called by Arabic physicians for fancied resemblance.

name of the mountain east of the River Jordan, whence Moses was allowed to view the Promised Land he could not enter (Deuteronomy iii.27); with figurative use from 1640s. The name is Hebrew, literally "cleft."

also Nabatean, c. 1600, "one of the Arab peoples dwelling in ancient times east and south of Palestine," builders of the rock city of Petra in modern Jordan, from Latin Nabataeus, Greek Nabataios; their name is of unknown origin.

village on the west bank of the Jordan River, perhaps from an alteration of Hebrew shalo "to be peaceful." The American Civil War battle fought in western Tennessee (April 6-7, 1862) was so called for being fought around the little Shiloh log church (Methodist), which was destroyed in the battle.

1880, proprietary name for white suspension of magnesium hydroxide in water, taken as an antacid, invented by U.S. chemist Charles Henry Phillips. Herbal or culinary preparations more or less resembling milk had been similarly named (for example milk of almond) since late 14c.

ancient name of a land lying between the Jordan and the Mediterranean promised to the children of Israel and conquered by them, so called from Canaan, son of Ham (Genesis x.15-19). Related: Canaanite. In the Apostle name Simon the Canaanite it is a transliteration of an Aramaic name meaning "zealot."