English
Lila
Lila comes from Spanish lila ‘lilac’, from Persian نیل ‘dark blue’, and ultimately from Sanskrit नील.
- Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEनील‘dark colored’
- Middle Persianc. 300 BCE–900 CE𐭭𐭩𐭫nīl
- Persianc. 900–presentنیلnil‘dark blue’
- Persian, derivedc. 900–presentنیلکnilak
- Arabicc. 500–presentلِيلَك‘lilac’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentlilac
- Spanishc. 1500–presentlila‘lilac’
- Englishearliest quotation 1867Lila
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEनील‘dark colored’
- Middle Persianc. 300 BCE–900 CE𐭭𐭩𐭫nīl
- Persianc. 900–presentنیلnil‘dark blue’
- Persian, derivedc. 900–presentنیلکnilak
- Arabicc. 500–presentلِيلَك‘lilac’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentlilac
- Spanishc. 1500–presentlila‘lilac’
- Englishearliest quotation 1867Lila
Earliest quotation: 1867, Lydia Maria Francis Child, A Romance of the Republic: “Your name is flowery too. I used to say…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *neyH- ‘to be excited, shine’
Another origin of Lila
- Sanskritc. 1500–500 BCEलीलाlīlā‘play, charm’
- EnglishtodayLila
Today it means
name A female given name from Arabic.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Sanskrit नील / Lila