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Origin and history of Spanish

Spanish(adj.)

c. 1200, Spainisc, "of or pertaining to Spain or Spaniards," from Spaine "Spain," from Old French Espaigne (see Spaniard) + -ish. Replaced Old English Speonisc. Altered 16c. by influence of Latin. As a noun, "the Spanish language," from late 15c.

For Spanish Main see main. Spanish moss (also long-moss) is attested from 1823. Spanish fly, the fabled aphrodisiac (ground-up cantharis blister-beetles), is attested from c. 1600.

Spanish American "of or pertaining to the parts of America where Spanish is spoken" is by 1811, also a noun. The Spanish-American War, fought between Spain and the U.S.A., was so called in British press speculations in early 1898, weeks before it began in April. For Spanish Inquisition (by c. 1600), see inquisition.

also from c. 1200

Entries linking to Spanish

inquisition(n.)

late 14c., "judicial investigation, act or process of inquiring," from Old French inquisicion "inquiry, investigation" (12c., Modern French inquisition), from Latin inquisitionem (nominative inquisitio) "a searching into, a seeking; legal examination, a seeking of grounds for accusation," noun of action from past participle stem of inquirere (see inquire).

In Church history, inquisitors were appointed from 382 C.E. to root out heretics; the ecclesiastical court appointed 13c. by Innocent III to suppress heresy never operated in Britain. The English word began to be used in this sense (and with a capital initial letter) after c. 1500, and usually refers to the office's reorganization 1478-1483 in Spain, where it fell under the control of the state as what is commonly called the Spanish Inquisition, noted especially for its severity, secrecy, and the number of its victims.

main(n.)

Old English mægen (Mercian megen) "power, bodily strength; force, violent effort; strength of mind or will; efficacy; supernatural power," from Proto-Germanic *maginam "power" (source also of Old High German megin "strength, power, ability"), reconstructed to be from a suffixed form of PIE root *magh- "to be able, have power."

The original sense of "power" is preserved in phrase might and main. Also used in Middle English for "royal power or authority" (c. 1400), "military strength" (c. 1300), "application of force" (c. 1300).

The meaning "chief or main part" (c. 1600) now is archaic or obsolete. The meaning "principal duct, pipe, or channel in a utility system" is first recorded 1727 in main drain. Especially the conduit under a street from which water supplies run to individual properties.

By 1540s as "continuous stretch of land or water;" in nautical jargon used loosely for "the ocean," but in Spanish Main the word is short for mainland and refers to the coast between Panama and Orinoco (as contrasted to the islands of the West Indies).

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gringo
term for a European or Anglo-American, 1847, from American Spanish gringo "foreigner," from Spanish gringo "foreign speech...The "Diccionario Castellano" (1787) says gringo was used in Malaga for "anyone who spoke Spanish badly," and in Madrid for...Hence the American Spanish verb engringarse "to act like a foreigner."...
hidalgo
"Spanish nobleman of secondary rank," 1590s, from Spanish hidalgo, from Old Spanish fidalgo, usually explained as a shortened...For alteration of f- and h- in Spanish, see hacienda....
Florida
U.S. state, formerly a Spanish colony, probably from Spanish Pascua florida, literally "flowering Easter," a Spanish name...for Palm Sunday, and so named because the peninsula was discovered on that day (March 20, 1513) by the expedition of Spanish...
Ladino
1889, a jargon of Spanish mixed with Hebrew, Arabic, and other elements, written in Hebrew characters, spoken by Sephardim...in Turkey, Greece, etc.; from Spanish Ladino "Latin," from Latin Latinus (see Latin....The Spanish word also had a sense of "sagacious, cunning, crafty," on the notion of "knowing Latin."...The Spanish word also appeared in American English in its Central American sense, "mestizo, lighter-skinned mixed race person...
gaberdine
"long, loose outer garment," 1510s, from Spanish gabardina, which Watkins says is from French galverdine, from a Germanic...The Spanish form perhaps was influenced by Spanish gabán "overcoat" and tabardina "coarse coat."...Century Dictionary, however, says the Spanish word is an extended form of gabán and the Spanish word was borrowed and underwent...
patio
1818, "an inner court open to the sky" in Spanish and Spanish-American countries, from Spanish patio probably from Old Provençal...Another theory traces the Spanish word to Latin patere "to lie open."...
hacienda
1760, from American Spanish, "an estate or ranch in the country," from Spanish hacienda "landed estate, plantation," earlier...The change of Latin f- to Spanish h- is characteristic; compare hablar from fabulari, hacer from facere, hecho from factum...Spanish; the conquistador is known in contemporary records as both Hernando and Fernando Cortés....
country
mid-13c., "(one's) native land;" c. 1300, "any geographic area," sometimes with implications of political organization, from Old French contree, cuntrede "region, district, country," from Vulgar Latin *(terra) contrata "(land) lying opposite," or "(land) spread before one," in Me
land
Old English lond, land, "ground, soil," also "definite portion of the earth's surface, home region of a person or a people, territory marked by political boundaries," from Proto-Germanic *landja- (source also of Old Norse, Old Frisian Dutch, Gothic land, German Land), perhaps fro
romance
c. 1300, romaunce, "a story, written or recited, in verse, telling of the adventures of a knight, hero, etc.," often one designed principally for entertainment, from Old French romanz "verse narrative" (Modern French roman), also "the vulgar language." It was originally an adverb

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