Kattun
/ˈkætən/noun
An obsolete English spelling of cotton, meaning a woven textile made from cotton fibers.
Did you know?The word traveled into European languages through medieval trade, ultimately reflecting Arabic قُطْن (quṭn), the word for cotton; “kattun” is a historical spelling rather than a separate mystical substance.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Arabic
Arabic
quṭn
“Cotton; the plant or its fiber”
Medieval Latin
Latin
cottonum
“Cotton, borrowed through Mediterranean trade”
13th–14th Century
Old French
coton
“Cotton fiber or cotton cloth”
Middle English
English
katoun
“Cotton or cotton cloth”
Early Modern English
English
kattun
“A variant spelling of cotton”
Modern English
English
cotton
“A soft fiber from the cotton plant, or fabric made from it”