Where does “playa” come from?

playa (Indonesian) comes from English playa, from Papiamentu playa, from Spanish playa, from Latin plagia, from Latin plāga — plague, misfortune.

playa (Indonesian): playa (a level area which habitually fills with water that evaporates entirely)

Definitions

  1. playa (a level area which habitually fills with water that evaporates entirely)

Ancestry of “playa”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishplayaA level area which habitually fills with water...
2Papiamentuplayabeach; "the town"
3Spanishplayabeach; car park; feminine singular of playo
4Latinplagiaslope, slant; beach; second-person singular...
5Latinplāgaplague, misfortune
Every word from Latin plāga
playa — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer