Where does “ulama” come from?
Ulama comes from Classical Nahuatl ōllamaliztli, a term associated with the Mesoamerican ball game played in pre-Columbian cultures.
ulama (English): A ball game, descended from tlachtli;...
Definitions
- A ball game, descended from tlachtli;...
Ancestry of “ulama”, step by step
ulama traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Arabic عُلَمَاء
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arabic | عُلَمَاء | — |
| 2 | Arabic | عَالِم | knowing, learned, also scholar; learned one;... |
| 3 | Arabic | عَلِمَ | to know, to perceive, to distinguish |
| 4 | Arabic | ل | to, for, belonging to; لَـ •; Used to express... |
| 5 | Proto-Semitic | *lV- | for, to |
via Classical Nahuatl ōllamaliztli
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Classical Nahuatl | ōllamaliztli | it is a ritual sport in which two teams of players strike a solid rubber ball with the hips within a masonry ballcourt |
| 2 | Classical Nahuatl | ōllama | to play in a ritual ball game |
| 3 | Classical Nahuatl | ōlli | latex; rubber, rubber ball |