Where does “alkali” come from?

Alkali comes from Arabic qalī, originally denoting the ashes of burned plants used in soap-making.

alkali (English): One of a class of caustic bases, such as soda,...

Definitions

  1. One of a class of caustic bases, such as soda,...

Ancestry of “alkali”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchalcalialkali
2Medieval Latinalcali—
3Arabicاَلْقِلْي—

Words derived from “alkali”

Every word from Arabic اَلْقِلْي →Every word from Medieval Latin alcali →Every word from French alcali →