The British also use it to refer to very large trucks. Juggernautĭefined as something that is very large and unstoppable, this word has its roots in the fascinating Jagannath yatra – a religious procession in Puri in Orissa where a giant carriage carries the image of Lord Jagannath, and which devotees are said to have sometimes thrown themselves under. Broken down, “pay” means leg and “jama” means clothing, thus referring to a pair of comfortable, loose and lightweight trousers fitted with drawstring waistbands. Pyjamaĭenoting loose fitting sleeping clothes worn by early European settlers, the English word pyjama was taken from the Hindi word payajama. No wonder this common Hindi word was assimilated into the English language. In olden days, letters were a way to practice critical reading, self-expressive writing and also exchange ideas with like-minded others in India. Remember the chits you used to take to your exam halls? Chit has its origins in chitthi, a Hindi word for a letter or post. The English word dinghy was derived from the Hindi word dingi or dingiya that was used for small rowing boats that travelled through the sheltered waters of Indian rivers and along the Indian coasts to fish and to transport passengers and freight in the olden days. The English fashion dictionary borrowed the word bandana from two Hindi words – badhnu, which describes the process of tie-and-dye through which large handkerchiefs with vibrant, distinctive designs were made, and bandhana meaning to tie something up. Jungleĭerived from the Hindi word jangal meaning a wild wasteland, it was used by English settlers in India to refer to any wild, untended or uncultivated land, including sparsely wooded scrub landscapes and tangled forest landscapes, overgrown with dense vegetation. Interestingly, the word veranda itself came to Hindi via the Portuguese. Since there were no verandahs in England because of its cold weather, the word never existed in English before the British interaction with India, where almost every house had one, usually for the family to enjoy the breeze on hot days.
Here’s a look at this act of ‘borrowing’ which enriched English with many new words, courtesy of Hindi and India. Cultural footprints of the past, these 17 words have deep Indian roots and have entered English through various routes, with most being absorbed during the days of British Raj. As a language which is continuously evolving, English has borrowed a multitude of words from Hindi.