Esparto
/ɛˈspɑːr.toʊ/noun
A tough Mediterranean grass used for making rope, baskets, paper, and other fiber products.
Did you know?Esparto’s English name comes through Spanish from a Latinized form of a Mediterranean plant name, and its tough fibers were so important that they helped drive a major 19th-century paper industry.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Mediterranean
Pre-Roman substrate
*spart-*
“An ancient plant name for a tough fiber-bearing grass or shrub, preserved in later regional forms.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
σπάρτον (spárton)
“A cord, rope, or rope made from plant fiber; also associated with fiber plants.”
Latin
Latin
spartum
“Esparto grass, especially the tough Mediterranean grass used for cordage and weaving.”
Spanish
Old Spanish / Spanish
esparto
“Esparto grass; also the fiber or material made from it.”
19th Century
English
esparto
“A name adopted in English for the grass and its commercially valuable fiber.”