banana

banana
\ \ [16] Banana comes from a West African language – possibly Wolof, a language of the Niger-Congo family, spoken in Senegal and the Gambia. The original European discoverers of the word – and the fruit – were the Spanish and Portuguese, who passed them on to England.
\ \ The term bananasmad’ is 20th-century, but its origins are obscure; some have compared banana oil, a 20th-century slang term for ‘mad talk, nonsense’.

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Banana — Banana …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • banana — banána ž DEFINICIJA 1. bot. a. tropska voćka (Musa paradisiaca, M. sapientium) iz porodice Musaceae b. mesnati hranjivi slatkasti plod te voćke 2. sport u košarci blokada udarca protivničkog igrača visokim skokom i ispruženom rukom SINTAGMA… …   Hrvatski jezični portal

  • banană — BANÁNĂ, banane, s.f. 1. Fruct de banan, având culoarea galbenă, formă lunguiaţă, miez făinos şi aromatic. 2. Piesă de contact electric formată dintr un mic cilindru metalic învelit pe jumătate în ebonită, care se montează la capătul unei conducte …   Dicționar Român

  • banana — 1590s, borrowed by Spanish or Portuguese from a W. African word, possibly Wolof banana. The plant was introduced to the New World from Africa in 1516. Top banana, second banana, etc. are 1950s, from show business slang use of banana for comedian …   Etymology dictionary

  • Banana — Ba*na na (b[.a]*n[aum] n[.a]; 277), n. [Sp. banana, name of the fruit.] (Bot.) A perennial herbaceous plant of almost treelike size ({Musa sapientum}); also, its edible fruit. See {Musa}. [1913 Webster] Note: The banana has a soft, herbaceous… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • banana — [bə nan′ə] n. [Sp & Port < native name in W Africa, as in Mande banäna] 1. any of a genus (Musa) of treelike tropical plants of the banana family, with long, broad leaves and large clusters of edible fruit; esp., any of the various hybrids… …   English World dictionary

  • banana — s.f. [dal port. banana, che risale a una voce della Guinea]. 1. (bot.) [frutto mangereccio del banano]. 2. (fig.) a. (fam.) [ciocca di capelli arrotolati] ▶◀ boccolo, ciuffo, onda. b. (elettrotecn.) [spina unipolare di connessione munita di… …   Enciclopedia Italiana

  • Banána — Banána, Haupthafen des Kongostaates, auf einet kleinen sandigen Halbinsel zwischen dem Atlantischen Ozean und dem Kongo, die künstlich durch Pfahlbauten und Steinschüttung befestigt ist. Längs der Innenseite läuft eine tiefe und geräumige… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Banana — Banāna, Handelsplatz des Kongostaates, r. an der Kongomündung …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Banana — Banana,   Canaan Sodingo, simbabwischer Politiker, * Esithezini (bei Bulawayo) 5. 3. 1936; methodistischer Geistlicher, arbeitete zunächst mit Bischof A. Muzorewa im Rahmen des »African National Council« (ANC) zusammen und war 1971 73… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • BANANA — (Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone) ba·nan·a || bÉ™ nɑːnÉ™ individual opposing the development of new buildings or edifices or projects close to his neighbourhood …   English contemporary dictionary

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