Kelp
/kɛlp/noun
A large brown seaweed, especially a type with long fronds and air bladders.
Did you know?In older English, kelp was the burned ash of seaweed used to make glass and soap, and the word’s meaning later shifted to the seaweed itself.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*kel-
“to heat; to burn”
Late Latin
Latin
calx
“lime, limestone, burnt stone”
Medieval Latin
Latin
cali
“burned seaweed ash used for glass-making”
Early Modern English
English
kelp
“the ash of burned seaweed used in making glass and soap”
Modern English
English
kelp
“the large brown marine algae itself”