*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of areca

Via Portuguese from Malayalam അടയ്ക്ക (aṭaykka), itself from Proto-Dravidian *aṭ-ay-kkāy (“areca nut”).

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In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

Any member of the genus Areca of about fifty species of single-stemmed palms in the family Arecaceae, found in humid tropical forests.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Via Portuguese from Malayalam അടയ്ക്ക (aṭaykka), itself from Proto-Dravidian *aṭ-ay-kkāy (“areca nut”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "pt",
        "3": "-"
      },
      "expansion": "Portuguese"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "ml",
        "3": "അടയ്ക്ക"
      },
      "expansion": "Malayalam അടയ്ക്ക (aṭaykka)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "dra-pro",
        "3": "*aṭ-ay-kkāy",
        "4": "",
        "5": "areca nut"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Dravidian *aṭ-ay-kkāy (“areca nut”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "അടയ്ക്ക",
      "അടയ്ക്ക#Malayalam"
    ],
    [
      "*aṭ-ay-kkāy",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Dravidian/aṭ-ay-kkāy"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Any member of the genus Areca of about fifty species of single-stemmed palms in the family Arecaceae, found in humid tropical forests."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "47572cfbd5c43054245bc0580bfb865085342934023e64ecf1ff509c4e6e7651",
      "rawRecordSha256": "b1c657e66f79a997e53fe08d77efeef45f0f9894e12adadcdc2aa1a05f9a6ba2",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2252222
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for areca →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-YXJlY2E