Five Cannabis Word Origins | high times

hemp

Shutterstock

The word “hemp” is of Germanic origin and was adopted into Old English. According to the Etymology Online Dictionary, “hemp” comes from the Old English word “hænep,” which refers to Cannabis sativa. It comes from the Proto-Germanic word hanapiz, which is also the word source of the Old Saxon word hanap, the Old Norse word hampr, the Old High German word hanaf, and the German word hanf.” It really shows how words develop over time. It is also related to the Dutch word “hennep”. Nowadays, of course, hemp only refers to non-psychoactive cannabis strains.

weed

Shutterstock

While countries in North Africa use different terms, in South Africa and surrounding areas, “Dagga” is commonly used to describe cannabis. Dagga is the Afrikaans word for cannabis that was in widespread use in the 1660s. Deriving from the word “dacha” in the Khoekhoe language used by the Hottentots, Dagga is a term used to describe cannabis and other various psychoactive plant species such as Leonotis leonurus, a smokable shrub also known as lion’s tail becomes to describe. Today, legendary strains like Durban Poison and Malawi Gold are putting South Africa on the map.

hashish

Shutterstock

According to the English Words of Arabic Ancestry, the earliest known archival record of the word “hashish” dates from 1598, but it has been in common use since at least the Middle Ages. Hashish comes from “assassin,” which comes from the 13th-century French and Italian words “assissini” and “assassini,” morphing from the Arabic “hashīshīn” in the 12th century. According to legend, assassins of the Hassan-i Sabbāh sect used hashish to recruit more members by drugging themselves and others with the potent cannabis concentrate described in Marco Polo’s writings.

bhang

Shutterstock

The ancient Sanskrit word for cannabis is exceptionally old, dating back to the 5th century BC. or 400 AD According to Cannabis: A History, the word “bhang” and other variations became popular in Hindi-speaking cultures. The word was first mentioned in 1596 by the Dutch merchant Jan Huyghen van Linschoten. For example, the Shaivite tradition believes that bhang should be given as an offering to Shiva. It has been used to describe hemp, marijuana, and intoxicating beverages made from marijuana. Modern bhang is usually a cannabis tea made with milk and sometimes saffron and garam masala.

Strong

Shutterstock

Pakalōlō, the Hawaiian word for grass, literally means “narcotic tobacco”. The Hawaiian “paka” means tobacco and “lōlō” means to numb or get high. It has been in use since at least 1842 when it appeared in the Hawaiian newspaper Ka Nonanona. This is also the reason for the name of the cannabis brand lōlō. In the early years of Barack Obama, who lived in Hawaii, he and his “Choom Gang” (stonehead crew) called Weed Pakalōlō. We love Maui Wowie and the classic Kona Gold.

This article appears in the August 2022 issue of The High Times. Subscribe here.