Aubergine derives from a
Sanskrit word meaning the
vegetable that prevents
farting or, more
literally, the vegetable that cures the
wind disorder. The Sanskrit name, pronounced
vatinganah was bestowed upon the
plant because it was believed to have a
carminative effect upon the
digestive system.
Vatinganah was then borrowed by
Persians as
badingan, which in turn was borrowed by
Arabic as
al-badinjan, the
al simply being the
Arabic definite article meaning
the. The Arabic name then became the
Spanish alberengena, which
French adopted as aubergine in the early seventeenth century. Finally in the {eighteenth century}, the French name of the plant was adopted by the
English, who might have stuck with the name
eggplant had they known the actual
meaning of aubergine.
- “Cupboard Love: A Dictionary of Culinary Curiosities” By Mark Morton