Dorp
/dɔːrp/noun
A village or small settlement, especially in South Africa or southern Africa.
Did you know?Dorp entered South African English through Afrikaans and Dutch, while its Germanic relatives include English “thorp” and German “Dorf,” both meaning a village or settlement.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*treb-
“A dwelling or settlement; the reconstructed ancestral root associated with Germanic village-words.”
Proto-Germanic
Germanic
*þurpą
“A village or hamlet.”
Old English
Old English
þorp
“A secondary settlement, hamlet, or village.”
Middle Dutch
Middle Dutch
dorp
“A village or rural settlement.”
17th Century
Afrikaans
dorp
“A village or small town, continuing the Dutch form in southern Africa.”
19th Century
South African English
dorp
“A small, often rural South African town or settlement.”
Modern English
English
dorp
“A village or small settlement, especially in southern African usage.”