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Where does the Portuguese word “alecrim” come from?

Alecrim is rosemary, and its first syllable is a fossil. The word comes from Andalusi Arabic al-iklīl, “the crown,” picked up during centuries of Arab presence in Iberia. That al- is the Arabic definite article, glued on permanently when Portuguese borrowed the noun — which is why so many everyday Portuguese words open with the same two letters.

Once you start looking, the Arabic layer is everywhere. Some words visibly keep the fossilized al-, just like alecrim: almofada (cushion), alface (lettuce), alfaiate (tailor), armazém (warehouse). Others are Arabic in origin too but don’t show that shape: azeite (olive oil), açúcar (sugar), álgebra. Rosemary also carries a nursery rhyme sung on both sides of the Atlantic — Alecrim, alecrim dourado, que nasceu no campo sem ser semeado: “golden rosemary, which grew in the field without being sown.”