Al- Words with an Arabic Origin

Many English words have roots in French, Latin and Greek, but let's not forget about Arabic.

In Arabic, the word for THE is AL-, and this can be seen in many English words, such as:

Algebra

Algorithm

Alchemy

Alcohol

Almanac

Alcove

These words are usually anglicized (made easier for English speakers to pronounce).

For example, the word algebra in the original Arabic is “al-jabr” and it means “the restoration” – referring to restoring (balancing) two sides of an equation.