Jungle came into English in 1776 from Hindi jangal, and behind that Sanskrit jangala-s. What is striking is that the original meaning is nearly the opposite of the English one: the Sanskrit means arid, sparsely grown with trees — waste ground, not dense growth. English took the word from the Indian landscapes it was applied to rather than from its Sanskrit sense, and inverted it in the process.
It belongs to the Anglo-Indian layer alongside bungalow, shampoo, loot, thug and guru. A Victorian commentator wrote in 1873 that jungle "may now be regarded as good English," on the grounds that the kind of wilderness it names is common in many countries and badly served by any other word — which is as clear a statement as you will find of why languages borrow. The figurative senses followed fast: a tangled mass of anything by 1850, a lawless place by 1906, after Upton Sinclair.
jungle (n.) 1776, "dense growth of trees and other tangled vegetation," such as that of some regions in India, from Hindi jangal "desert, forest, wasteland, uncultivated ground," from Sanskrit jangala-s "arid, sparsely grown with trees," a word of unknown origin. Extended by 1849 to other places overgrown by vegetation in a wild, tangled mass. The figurative sense of "wild, tangled mass" of anything is by 1850. Jungle , derived to us, through the living languages of India, from the Sanskrit, may now be regarded as good English. The sort of wild which it denotes is common enough in many countries, but is not nearly so aptly designated by any other expression. [Fitzedward Hall, "Modern English," 1873] The meaning "place notoriously lawless and violent" is attested by 1906, from Upton Sinclair's novel. The meaning "hobo camp" is from 1908. Asphalt jungle (1949) is from William R. Burnett's novel title, made into a film 1950 by John Huston; blackboard jungle (1954) is from Evan Hunter's novel title and 1955 movie. Jungle fever "remittent malignant fever prevalent in India and tropical regions" is from 1803. Jungle gym appears in advertisements from 1921, originally one word, made by Junglegym Inc., Chicago, U.S. Jungle bunny , derogatory for "Black person," is attested by 1966. also from 1776
jungle came in through Later and wider borrowings, and its spelling follows that family's conventions.
What gives it away on the page
| everyday domestic words from India | Sanskrit-descended languages, via the Raj.shampoo, bungalow, jungle, pyjamas, loot, thug, guru |
Later and wider borrowings in the spelling guide · guess another word's family