Etymograph

English

Lisbon

Lisbon may come from French Lisbonne.

  1. Frenchc. 1600–presentLisbonneuncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1808–10Lisbon

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Earlier history uncertain.

Lineage

  1. Frenchc. 1600–presentLisbonneuncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1808–10Lisbon

Earliest quotation: 1808–10, William Hickey, Memoirs of a Georgian Rake: “We had plenty of port wine and Lisbon, which,…”

The story

As the capital of Portugal, from French Lisbonne, from Arabic لِشْبُونَة (lišbūna), from Latin Olisīpō, the origin of which is uncertain.uncertain The source flags this step as uncertain. Older spellings include Ulixbona and Ulixbuna (in the Visigothic era); Ὀλισσιπών (Olissipṓn) or Ὀλισσιπόνα (Olissipóna) (by Greek writers), Olisippo (by Pliny the Elder), and Ulyssippo (by Pomponius Mela of Hispania), the last of which relates to the first-century Roman folk etymology that it was founded by and named after Ulysses; another common folk etymology is the Phoenician 𐤏𐤋𐤉𐤑 𐤏𐤁𐤀 (ʿlyṣ ʿbʾ /⁠ʿaliṣ-ʿuboʾ⁠/, “safe harbour”), but there is not much evidence for such words.folk etymology The source marks this as unproven or a folk etymology. Quoted, not asserted. Another possibility, based on hydronymy of the area, derives the name from Paleo-Hispanic's appellation for the Tagus, Lisso or Lucio. In other senses, with reference to the Portuguese city.

Every English word from French Lisbonne

Today it means

name A port city on the Iberian Peninsula, at the mouth of the Tagus River on the Atlantic Ocean; the capital city of Portugal.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / French Lisbonne / Lisbon

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