orange (English)
Where does "orange" come from?
The English word 'orange' traces back through Middle English 'orenge'[4] and Old French 'orenge'[4] to the Old French phrase 'pomme d'orenge'[1]. This traveled further back through Arabic 'نَارَنْج' ('nāranj')[1] and Classical Persian 'نَارَنْگْ' ('nārang')[1] to Sanskrit 'नारङ्ग' ('nāraṅga', meaning 'orange tree')[1], which itself was borrowed from Dravidian sources[1]. Along its European journey, the word was influenced by Old Occitan 'auranja' and the place name Orange, and was calqued from Old Italian 'melarancio'[1]. The surname was originally borrowed in the thirteenth century, followed by the fruit sense in the late fourteenth century and the color sense in 1510[1].
Open questions
- The Sanskrit term may alternatively derive from 'nāga-raṅga-', meaning colored like lead oxide. [2]
- The Sanskrit term is possibly derived from Proto-Austroasiatic '*ŋaːm', meaning 'sweet'. [2] [7] [11] [12]
Full etymology tree
- orange (English), 'An evergreen tree of the genus Citrus such as Citrus sinensis which yields oranges (the fruit).'
- inherited orenge (Middle English), 'orange (orange-coloured citrus fruit)'
- borrowed orange (Middle French), 'orange (fruit of the orange tree)'
- inherited orenge (Old French), 'orange (fruit of the orange tree)'
- derived pomme d'orenge (Old French), 'orange (fruit)'
- influenced by auranja (Old Occitan), 'orange (fruit)'
- calque melarancia (Italian), 'sweet orange, Citrus sinensis (fruit)'
- compound mela (Italian), 'apple (fruit)'
- inherited mēla (Late Latin)
- inherited melum (Latin), 'apple'
- inherited malum (Latin), 'apple (fruit)'
- derived μᾶλον (mâlon) (Ancient Greek), 'Doric and Aeolic form of μῆλον (mêlon, “apple”)'
- inherited malum (Latin), 'apple (fruit)'
- inherited melum (Latin), 'apple'
- inherited mēla (Late Latin)
- compound arancia (Italian), 'orange (fruit)'
- inherited نارنج (nāranj) (Arabic), 'bitter orange (Citrus aurantium)'
- inherited نارنگ (nārang) (Persian), 'bitter orange'
- inherited नारङ्ग (nāraṅga) (Sanskrit), 'the orange tree'
- borrowed (Dravidian)
- derived *ŋaːm (Proto-Austroasiatic), 'sweet'
- borrowed (Dravidian)
- inherited नारङ्ग (nāraṅga) (Sanskrit), 'the orange tree'
- inherited نارنگ (nārang) (Persian), 'bitter orange'
- inherited نارنج (nāranj) (Arabic), 'bitter orange (Citrus aurantium)'
- compound mela (Italian), 'apple (fruit)'
- derived pomme d'orenge (Old French), 'orange (fruit)'
- inherited orenge (Old French), 'orange (fruit of the orange tree)'
- borrowed orange (Middle French), 'orange (fruit of the orange tree)'
- inherited orenge (Middle English), 'orange (orange-coloured citrus fruit)'
Ancestors
- orenge (Middle English)
- auranja (Old Occitan)
- नारङ्ग (Sanskrit)
Cognates and doublets
- നാരങ്ങ (Malayalam)
Descendants and derived words
- orange-throated whiptail (English)
- oranĝo (Esperanto)
- ʔo·linčas (Makah)
- acridine orange (English)
- African cherry orange (English)
- Alpine grassland orange (English)
- bitter orange (English)
- blaze orange (English)
- blood orange (English)
- blorange (English)
- blorange (English)
- bog orange (English)
Sources
- orange (English) - Wiktionary
- नारङ्ग (nāraṅga) (Sanskrit) - Wiktionary
- auranja (Old Occitan) - Wiktionary
- orenge (Middle English) - Wiktionary
- orange (Middle French) - Wiktionary
- orenge (Old French) - Wiktionary
- ŋaːm (Proto-Austroasiatic) - Wiktionary
- pomme d'orenge (Old French) - Wiktionary
- melarancia (Italian) - Wiktionary
- mela (Italian) - Wiktionary
- نارنج (nāranj) (Arabic) - Wiktionary
- نارنگ (nārang) (Persian) - Wiktionary
Updated September 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris