IN GREEK
λαγούμι
lagoumi
underground tunnel, mine gallery, drain
IN TURKISH
lağım
lağım
sewer, drain
WEAR THE WORD
λαγούμι in blue ink and lağım in red, on a T shirt, a tote or a mug.
THE RECORD
- LENT BY, BORROWED BY
- Round trip
- STARTED IN
- Ancient Greek
- CATEGORY
- Places
- HOW THE MEANING DRIFTED
- Greek keeps the tunnel and mine sense; Turkish is now mainly sewer.
- NOTES
- From Arabic laġm; Greek likely received it through Turkish. Nişanyan says lağım came from Arabic laġam, which Arabic took from Ancient Greek λαχώμα, so the word went from Greek via Arabic and Turkish back into Greek.
COMMENTS
An editor reads every comment before it appears.
SOURCES
- Nişanyan Sözlük (checked online)
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) ‘λαγούμι / lağım’, entry 305, Defter ή Tefteri: a ledger of shared Greek and Turkish words. https://defteritefteri.com/en/w/305-lagoumi/. Accessed [day month year].