English
Palawala
Palawala may come from French parler ‘to speak, talk’.
- Frenchc. 1600–presentparler‘to speak, talk’uncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1999Palawala
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Frenchc. 1600–presentparler‘to speak, talk’uncertain
- Englishearliest quotation 1999Palawala
Earliest quotation: 1999, Caribbean-Canadians Celebrate Carnival: : “Prior to her school days, my mother spoke French…”
The story
Probably at least partly from French parler, with repetition to make it sound like babbling.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *gʷelH- ‘to hit by throwing’
ball, quail, quill, quell, obelisk, pul, 64 more
through Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō
symbolic, ballistic, symbolist, ballista, 35 more
through Ancient Greek βάλλω ‘to throw’
problem, symbol, devil, metabolic, emblem, hyperbolic, embolism, anabolic, metabolize, hyperbola, 34 more
through Ancient Greek παραβολή ‘a placing of two things side by side,…’
through Latin parabola ‘parable, comparison’
parole, parable, parabola, 3 more
through Old French parler ‘to speak’
parliament, parlor, parley, 1 more
through Middle French parler ‘to speak’
Today it means
noun a local creole language, such as Antillean Creole or Jamaican Creole
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / French parler / Palawala