Scirocco
/ʃɪˈrɒk.oʊ/noun
A hot, often dust-laden wind blowing from the Sahara across the Mediterranean.
Did you know?Scirocco comes through Italian from Arabic *šarq* meaning “east,” because this wind was named from the direction it blew from — not from any demon or spell, just the ancient geography of the Mediterranean.
Etymological Timeline
Arabic
Arabic
šarq
“the east; sunrise; the direction of the rising sun”
Medieval Arabic
Arabic
šarqī
“eastern; from the east”
Medieval Italian
Italian
scirocco
“a hot wind from the east or southeast”
16th Century
Italian
scirocco
“the southeast wind of the Mediterranean”
Modern English
English
scirocco
“a hot, dry wind, especially one blowing from North Africa into southern Europe”