As I mentioned, I’ve been enjoying the audiobook version of Sharpe’s Tiger, and I was surprised to learn that the word loot was borrowed from Hindi. It’s included in this list of words English owes to India:
A – atoll, avatar
B – bandana, bangle, bazaar, Blighty, bungalow
C – cashmere, catamaran, char, cheroot, cheetah, chintz, chit, chokey, chutney, cot, cummerbund, curry
D – dinghy, doolally, dungarees
G – guru, gymkhana
H – hullabaloo
J – jodhpur, jungle, juggernaut, jute
K – khaki, kedgeree
L – loot
N – nirvana
P – pariah, pashmina, polo, pukka, pundit, purdah, pyjamas
S – sari, shampoo, shawl, swastika
T – teak, thug, toddy, typhoon
V – veranda
Y – yoga
Most of those are clearly Indian, but plenty surprised me — bandana, catamaran, cheetah, cot, cummerbund, dinghy, jungle, and pundit.
“Pandit” is the origin of pundit, a Hindi honorific often given to Nehru, for example.
My favourite, not listed, is “nabob”, as in a rich potentate or corporate titan, a coffee brand, and nattering nabobs of negativism. Other than the coffee, it seems to have slipped out of standard usage since the 70s. It was originally from “nawab”, a Mughal provincial governor, who typically lived in a level of considerably grandeur.
I was most struck by typhoon, which I had assumed of Chinese origin, and atoll.
I thought typhoon was Chinese as well, but its etymology is odder than I could’ve imagined.
I say “typhoon” comes from Chinese.