Where does “coolie” come from?
Coolie comes from Hindi क़ुली, from Ottoman Turkish قول, from Arabic قَوْل meaning "speech" or "utterance."
coolie (English): An unskilled Asian worker, usually of Chinese or...
Definitions
- An unskilled Asian worker, usually of Chinese or...
Ancestry of “coolie”, step by step
coolie traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Hindi क़ुली
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hindi | क़ुली | porter; coolie; migrant labourer; slave; servant |
| 2 | Turkish | köle | slave |
| 3 | Ottoman Turkish | كوله | male slave |
| 4 | Proto-Turkic | kȫle | slave, servant |
via Urdu قلی
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Urdu | قلی | slave; laborer; coolie |