Etymology

avania

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Today it means: A tax or fee imposed on foreigners under the Ottoman Empire, especially one considered to be irregular or extortionate. Full definition →

Italian avania ← Medieval Greek ἀβανία ← Arabic خَوَّان
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The story

  1. Arabic · derived fromخَوَّان“unreliable, treacherous”
  2. Medieval Greek · derived fromἀβανία
  3. Italian · borrowed fromavania
  4. English todayavania

Borrowed from Italian avania, from Medieval Greek ἀβανία (abanía, cfr. modern Greek αβανιά (avaniá) “defamation, slander”), possibly from Arabic خَوَّان (ḵawwān, “unreliable, treacherous”).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.