English word origin

Etymology of jumbo

From Jumbo (1860–1885), the name given to a large African elephant from East Africa that was purchased in 1882 by American showman P. T. Barnum (1810–1891) for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Compare Swahi

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 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.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

An especially large or powerful person, animal, or thing. · An elephant. · A platform-mounted machine for drilling rock. · A large airplane, such as those used for intercontinental travel.

adj

Especially large or powerful.

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

Relationships mentioned by the source

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

Derivation mentionjambosw

This page abbreviates 2 auxiliary source items. The etymology narrative is not shortened. Omission counts are available in the audit fields below; consult the original for complete auxiliary material.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "sw",
        "3": "jambo",
        "4": "",
        "5": "matter, thing"
      },
      "expansion": "Swahili jambo (“matter, thing”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "African elephant",
      "African elephant"
    ],
    [
      "showman",
      "showman"
    ],
    [
      "jambo",
      "jambo#Swahili"
    ],
    [
      "jumbe",
      "jumbe#Swahili"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "An especially large or powerful person, animal, or thing.",
        "An elephant.",
        "A platform-mounted machine for drilling rock.",
        "A large airplane, such as those used for intercontinental travel."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
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    },
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      "pos": "adj",
      "glosses": [
        "Especially large or powerful."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "not-comparable"
      ],
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  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

Ellipsis of mumbo jumbo (“a deity or other supernatural being worshipped by certain West African peoples; an idol representing such a being”).

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

From (mumbo) jumbo.

Inspect preserved source fields

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

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  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Ellipsis of mumbo jumbo (“a deity or other supernatural being worshipped by certain West African peoples; an idol representing such a being”)."
      ],
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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 jumbo →

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-anVtYm8