Indian Words Used in the English Language

Hello there, those of you who have read the recent blogs will see that holidays have featured highly; Andy wrote about his holiday in South Africa, Ben mentioned his recent trip to Morocco and I’m going to talk a little about my fabulous holiday in Southern India (Kerala and Tamil Nadu). Actually, it was Ben who suggested that I go there, thanks Ben!

In Kochin I watched the local fishermen and sampled their catch in the evenings with a cold Kingfisher beer. I then visited the green and lush hills of Munnar and saw wild elephants and buffalo; next I took a houseboat through the backwaters of Appelley and then went south to chill out on the beach. My final destination was Madurai where I visited the Ski Meenakshi Temple (see photo) it’s definitely worth seeing, it’s 52 metres high and covers 6 hectares, it’s amazing.

Travelling around, I was impressed how well most Indians speak English even though British rule finished over 60 years ago. This made me wonder about Indian words that are used in modern English. Below, are some words of Hindi and Urdu origin that the British have 'borrowed' and still currently use today. Enjoy using them!

Bangle - a solid bracelet
from Bāngṛī बांगड़ी, a type of bracelet

Bungalow - a house which is all on ground level
from बंगला banglA & Urdu بنگلہ banglA, literally, "(house) in the Bengal style".]

Cot - a bed with high sides for a baby
from Khāt, खाट, a portable bed

Cushy – easy, e.g. a cushy job
from khushi, cf. Hindi ख़ुशी - Urdu خوشی "easy, happy, soft"

Doolally - crazy
from Hindi डॆऒललि via Marathi देवळाली Deolali, a hospital in Maharashtra,
India. It means having an unbalanced state of mind

Guru - Someone who knows a lot about a particular subject
from गुरु Guru, A teacher, instructor, intellectual or spiritual leader who
councils or advises

Jungle – a thick tropical forest
from जङल् jangal, another word for wilderness or forest

Karma - the belief that all the good and bad things that you do in this life affect how good
or bad your future lives will be
from कर्म Karma , meaning acts or deeds

Pukka - good quality, well made
from Pakkā पक्का,پکا cooked, ripe, solid

Pyjamas – trousers and a top that you wear in bed
from Persian پايجامه Payjama meaning "leg garment" which originated in Hindi पैजामा

Shampoo - a liquid soap for washing hair
from chāmpo (चाँपो /tʃãːpoː/) to smear and massage

Thug – a violent man
from Thag ठग, meaning thief or conman