Etymograph / Myth vs. record / marmalade

Myth vs. record

marmalade

Every word has its own definition in its root. Some words also carry a story about where they came from. Here is what Wiktionary says about the story, and what the record shows.

What Wiktionary says about the story

A false folk etymology claims that this comes from the French phrase “Marie est malade” (“Mary is ill”), referring to Mary, Queen of Scots, falling ill and being given marmalade to feel better.

The record

Marmalade comes from Portuguese marmelada ‘quince jam’, from Latin melimēlum ‘sweet apple’, and ultimately from Ancient Greek μελίμηλον.

1. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEμελίμηλον¹melímēlon‘geniting (a variety of apple)’
2. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEmelimēlum¹‘sweet apple’
3. Portuguesec. 1500–presentmarmelo¹‘quince’
4. Old Galician-Portuguesec. 1100–1500marmelo²
5. Portuguesec. 1500–presentmarmelada¹‘quince jam’
6. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600marmelade¹
7. Englishearliest quotation 2005marmalade¹

The full lineage of marmalade →