Vol. 09 · Loanwords ·Chinese ·1850s
Chow
from chāau
- Meaning
- Food (slang); also a breed of dog.
- Source word
- chāau
- Route into English
- Cantonese *chāau* (to stir-fry), via pidgin English on 19th-century trade ships → American slang. The dog-breed sense ("chow chow") comes from the same pidgin, used of miscellaneous Chinese exports.
- Arrived
- 1850s
From Chinese
Trade English from the South China Sea ports (especially Hokkien-speaking Xiamen and Canton) seeded the early borrowings; 20th-century diplomacy and military contact added the rest.
English borrows.
Browse the full loanword atlas or explore another source language.