ジラフ (Japanese)

Where does "ジラフ" come from?

The Japanese word ジラフ (jirafu) is a direct loanword from the English 'giraffe.' This term traces its long history back through Middle French and Italian to the Arabic 'zurāfa,' which itself originated from the Classical Persian 'zurnāpā,' a compound meaning 'long-legged.' Ultimately, this global journey reflects how the name for this distinctive African animal was carried across cultures and languages.

Full etymology tree

• ジラフ (jirafu) (Japanese), 'giraffe'
  • borrowed giraffe (English), 'A ruminant, of the genus Giraffa, of the African savannah with long legs and highly elongated neck, making them the tallest living animal; yellow fur patterned with dark spots, often in the form of a network; and two or more short, skin-covered horns, so-called; strictly speaking the horn-like projections are ossicones.'
    • borrowed giraffe (Middle French), 'giraffe (mammal)'
      • borrowed giraffa (Italian), 'giraffe (mammal)'
        • borrowed zurāfa (Arabic)
          • borrowed zārīp̄ā (Classical Syriac)
            • borrowed zurnāpā (Classical Persian)
              • compound zurnā (Classical Persian)
              • compound pā (Classical Persian)
                • inherited p-a-d (Old Persian)
                  • inherited *pā́dah (Proto-Iranian), 'foot'
                    • inherited *pā́ts (Proto-Indo-Iranian), 'foot'
                      • inherited *pṓds (Proto-Indo-European), 'foot'

Ancestors

• giraffe (English)

Updated June 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris