Question
Where Does the Word Espadrille Come From?
From Greek spartos to Occitan espardilha and French espadrille: the word's journey, its first dates, and why the Spanish alpargata is a different story.
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Espadrille is a French word that English borrowed. French took it from the Occitan language of southern France, and the Occitan word is built on espart, esparto grass, the wiry plant once braided into the sole. In short, an espadrille is named after what it stands on.
The chain, step by step
Putting the dictionaries side by side gives this sequence:
- Ancient Greek σπάρτος (spartos): the name of the esparto plant, according to French Wikipedia.
- Old Provençal espart: esparto grass.
- Occitan espardilha: English Wiktionary gives this form; French Wikipedia, citing the lexicographer Mistral, gives espardi(l)hos, glossed as "sandals of esparto".
- French espardille: attested in 1723, according to French Wikipedia.
- French espadrille: the r and the d swapped places (espar-dille became espa-drille). Linguists call this kind of swap a metathesis.
- English espadrille: borrowed from French.
The Catalan branch is older
The French word is not the first written trace. English and French Wikipedia both say the shoe is documented from 1322, in Catalan, under the name espardenya. Wiktionary traces espardenya to Old Catalan espartenya, again from espart. So the Catalan and Occitan names are cousins, both grown from the same grass. The sources tell the route slightly differently: English Wikipedia presents Catalan as the source, with the Occitan word coming from it, while the Wiktionaries stop at Occitan and simply compare it with Catalan. All of them agree on the plant.
The Basque name follows the same idea
Basque says espartin (plural espartinak), as both Wiktionaries and English Wikipedia record. The resemblance to espart is plain, though the sources we read do not trace the Basque form in detail. More on it on the Basque word for espadrille.
Why alpargata is different
The Spanish and Portuguese word alpargata does not come from esparto. The sources agree that it passed through Andalusian Arabic (al-barḡāt, plural of barḡa), and that this word probably came from the Basque abarka, a sandal. Spanish Wikipedia breaks abarka into abar, "small branch", plus a suffix, which would make the first sandals "things made of twigs". Wiktionary gives the same route with a "probably". We cover the comparison on alpargata vs espadrille and the sandal itself on abarka.
Summary table
| Word | Language | Root | Meaning of the root |
|---|---|---|---|
| espadrille | French, English | Occitan espardilha | esparto |
| espardenya | Catalan | Old Catalan espartenya | esparto |
| espartin | Basque | resembles espart | esparto (not traced in our sources) |
| alpargata | Spanish, Portuguese | Andalusian Arabic al-barḡāt, probably from Basque abarka | sandal, small branch |
For the full list of names in other languages, see the home page. To say the word correctly, see how to pronounce espadrille.
Frequently asked questions
What does espadrille literally mean?
It goes back to a word for esparto grass, the fibre once braided into the sole. The Occitan source word meant sandals made of esparto.
When was the French word first recorded?
French Wikipedia dates the older form espardille to 1723; the modern espadrille came from it by a swap of sounds.
Sources
Pages consulted for this article: