IN GREEK
ρόκα
roka
rocket leaves (arugula)
IN TURKISH
roka
roka
rocket; arugula
WEAR THE WORD
ρόκα in blue ink and roka in red, on a T shirt, a tote or a mug.
THE RECORD
- LENT BY, BORROWED BY
- Greek to Turkish
- STARTED IN
- Italian (via Greek, possibly)
- CATEGORY
- Food
- HOW THE MEANING DRIFTED
- Both refer to the salad leaf.
- NOTES
- Rona & Dedes list Greek mediation, but independent borrowing from Romance is also plausible.
COMMENTS
An editor reads every comment before it appears.
SOURCES
- Rona & Dedes (2007), “Languages in Contact: Greek Loanwords in Turkish”, Journal of Turkish Studies 31/2, p. 190 makale.isam.org.tr
Etymologies are checked against the dictionaries and studies listed. An entry is stamped settled only when both the Greek and the Turkish side have been checked. Research for this ledger was compiled with AI assistance and reviewed by the editors.
HOW TO CITE THIS ENTRY
Gold, K. (ed.) (2026) ‘ρόκα / roka’, entry 064, Defter ή Tefteri: a ledger of shared Greek and Turkish words. https://defteritefteri.com/en/w/064-roka/. Accessed [day month year].