entry
coral
/ˈkɔrəl/Hard marine skeleton or its reddish-pink color
From Greek, probably borrowed from a Semitic source coral (Coral).
from Greek korallion, a word perhaps of Semitic origin (compare Hebrew goral "small pebble," Arabic garal "small...
from Old French coral (12c., Modern French corail )
+1 more sourcefrom Old French coral (12c., Modern French corail )
+1 more sourcefrom Old French coral (12c., Modern French corail )
+1 more sourceWord Ancestry
from Greek korallion, a word perhaps of Semitic origin (compare Hebrew goral "small pebble," Arabic garal "small...
from Old French coral (12c., Modern French corail )
+1 more sourcefrom Old French coral (12c., Modern French corail )
+1 more sourcefrom Old French coral (12c., Modern French corail )
+1 more sourcePicture a Mediterranean merchant holding up a branching red skeleton from the sea: that vivid object traveled through Greek korállion, Latin corallium, Old French coral, and into English by about 1300. The ultimate source is uncertain, but the leading theory connects it with Semitic words such as Hebrew goral, “small pebble,” and Arabic jaral, “small stone”—a wonderfully earthy name for something built by tiny marine animals. Earlier scholars tried a more dramatic explanation, linking it to Greek korē, “girl,” and the myth of Medusa, whose gaze supposedly turned coral red; modern scholarship generally favors the Semitic proposal. By the fifteenth century, coral had escaped the seashore and become a color word, while later compounds gave us coral reef and coral snake. So when you say “coral,” you are carrying a little red Mediterranean branch—and possibly an ancient word for a pebble—into the room.
The Story
Picture a Mediterranean merchant holding up a branching red skeleton from the sea: that vivid object traveled through Greek korállion, Latin corallium, Old French coral, and into English by about 1300. The ultimate source is uncertain, but the leading theory connects it with Semitic words such as Hebrew goral, “small pebble,” and Arabic jaral, “small stone”—a wonderfully earthy name for something built by tiny marine animals. Earlier scholars tried a more dramatic explanation, linking it to Greek korē, “girl,” and the myth of Medusa, whose gaze supposedly turned coral red; modern scholarship generally favors the Semitic proposal. By the fifteenth century, coral had escaped the seashore and become a color word, while later compounds gave us coral reef and coral snake. So when you say “coral,” you are carrying a little red Mediterranean branch—and possibly an ancient word for a pebble—into the room.
Modern Usage
A humorous mishearing of “Carl” associated with The Walking Dead
Popularized by: The Walking Dead fandom
Notable References
- The Walking Dead meme: “Coral! There’s a walker behind you!”
Kin & Kindred
From 'coral'·Coral; originally especially red Mediterranean coral
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Free Dictionary
Urban Dictionary
Wikipedia
Wiktionary