Rakia
/ˈrɑː.ki.ə/noun
A strong Balkan fruit brandy, typically distilled from plums, grapes, or other fermented fruit.
Did you know?Rakia is related to Arabic ʿaraq, meaning “sweat,” a vivid reference to the droplets produced during distillation rather than to any magical ritual.
Etymological Timeline
Medieval Arabic
Arabic
ʿaraq (عرق)
““Sweat”; the word also came to denote distilled liquor, likely because it emerged drop by drop from the still.”
Medieval period
Arabic
ʿaraqī
“Distilled spirit or liquor associated with ʿaraq, “sweat.””
Ottoman period
Ottoman Turkish
rakı
“An alcoholic spirit distilled from fermented produce, especially associated with anise-flavored liquor.”
Early modern period
South Slavic
rakija
“Distilled fruit spirit; the suffix reflects South Slavic adaptation of the Ottoman Turkish word.”
Modern English
English
rakia
“A Balkan fruit brandy, commonly used as an English transliteration or variant of rakija.”