From one culture to another: Here are six Spanish words with Arabic origins!

The influence of Arabic on Spanish dates back to the Muslim civilizations who inhabited the Iberian Peninsula between the 7th and 15th centuries. Also known as “Spanish Arabic”, there’s meaning behind the “al-'' in some of the words we commonly use in Spanish like “almohada”, which means... 

…pillow in English. But in Arabic, “al-” is a definite article (like the English “the”) which was kept when introducing words into Spanish. So, in theory, if you say “la almohada” you are technically saying “the the pillow” 😲 The next word is one you’ve probably...

… used a couple of times, “ojalá” which had a religious connotation before and meant “If God would want it” or “God willing”. An evolution of the word “law šá lláh” in Arabic, today “ojalá” simply means “I hope”. But, one thing we’re truly hoping for is...

...cafecito! “Café” derives from the Arabic word “qahwa” which is a short version for “qahhwat al-bun” meaning “wine of the bean”. And doesn’t a cafecito in the “barriy” aka “barrio” sound delicious? “Barriy” refers to the outside or exterior of a neighborhood. 

Other words with Arabic origins include “al-ruzz” which in Spanish translates to “arroz”. And when we’re feeling sick we often reach for…”šarāb” which means “jarabe”. Your next word in Spanish (after your throat is soothed) might originate from Arabic! How cool is that? 😍