Banga
/ˈbæŋ.ɡə/noun
A large earthenware water jar, especially one used in the Philippines.
Did you know?Banga jars were traditionally used to cool drinking water through the slow evaporation of moisture through their porous clay walls—a natural form of refrigeration.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Philippine
Proto-Philippine
*baŋa
“Reconstructed term for an earthenware vessel or jar”
Precolonial period
Tagalog
banga
“Clay jar or water vessel”
16th–17th Century
Spanish Philippine usage
banga
“A Philippine earthenware jar, recorded in descriptions of local material culture”
19th Century
English
banga
“A large Philippine earthenware jar”
Modern English
English
banga
“A large clay water jar, particularly in Philippine contexts”