The word alcohol derives from the Arabic name for kohl, the ancient eye cosmetic

Kohl, the eye-liner pencil known in the East since the 4th millennium BC, etymologically precedes the word alcohol, borrowed by Europeans from the Arab world. Alcohol derives from the Arabic al-kuħl, meaning "made of antimony", or, literally, of kohl. The word entered Arabic from Assyro-Babylonian, where it meant the same thing. In time the word "alcohol" came to designate not only the ancient cosmetic, but other products prepared in a similar manner, by means of sublimation or distillation.

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The word alcohol derives from the Arabic name for kohl, the ancient eye cosmetic

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September digest: archaeological finds, exhibitions, museums, theatre and the Church

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