entry
panda
/ˈpændə/Bamboo-eating bear or red panda
From French panda (Animal name).
from French panda, of unclear ultimate origin but probably
from French panda, of unclear ultimate origin but probably
from French panda, of unclear ultimate origin but probably
Word Ancestry
from French panda, of unclear ultimate origin but probably
from French panda, of unclear ultimate origin but probably
from French panda, of unclear ultimate origin but probably
The first panda to wander into English wasn’t the famous black-and-white bear at all. It was the red panda, recorded in 1835, wearing a ringed tail and a name that French travelers seem to have picked up from Nepalese speech. Then along came the giant panda, discovered by the French missionary Armand David in 1869 and initially saddled with the wonderfully awkward label "parti-colored bear." By 1901, the new bear had borrowed the old name because zoologists realized the two animals were relatives, which is how one Himalayan nickname ended up on a Chinese icon. There’s even a separate, unrelated South Asian panda meaning a learned man—cousin to pundit—which makes this little word feel like a suitcase with the wrong clothes in it. The memorable part: panda didn’t start as a symbol of cuddly diplomacy; it began as a field-note label that got promoted into fame.
The Story
The first panda to wander into English wasn’t the famous black-and-white bear at all. It was the red panda, recorded in 1835, wearing a ringed tail and a name that French travelers seem to have picked up from Nepalese speech. Then along came the giant panda, discovered by the French missionary Armand David in 1869 and initially saddled with the wonderfully awkward label "parti-colored bear." By 1901, the new bear had borrowed the old name because zoologists realized the two animals were relatives, which is how one Himalayan nickname ended up on a Chinese icon. There’s even a separate, unrelated South Asian panda meaning a learned man—cousin to pundit—which makes this little word feel like a suitcase with the wrong clothes in it. The memorable part: panda didn’t start as a symbol of cuddly diplomacy; it began as a field-note label that got promoted into fame.
Modern Usage
Slang for a police cruiser; also a novelty song title/lyric reference in pop culture
Notable References
- Urban Dictionary
Kin & Kindred
From 'panda'·Animal name, probably from a Himalayan/Nepalese source
Derived Terms
English words from this root
Sources
Free Dictionary
Urban Dictionary
Wikipedia
Wiktionary