The Esoteric Wordsmyth For Enriching The Esoteric Vocabulary!

The Esoteric Wordsmyth

Dragoman

Dragoman pronounced \DRAG-uh-man\ The word took a scenic route to its present form via French, Italian, and medieval Latin/Greek, from Arabic tarjuman, from Aramaic turgemana, from Akkadian targumanu (interpreter).  An interpreter or guide.

‘Soon, (Art) Buchwald set himself up as the laughing dragoman to American celebrities. The foster home boy became Our Man in Paris. He took Elvis Presley to the Lido.’

Lance Morrow; Franglais Spoken Here; Time (New York); Sep 30, 1996.

‘Born in Jerusalem, he (Wadie Said) went from being a dragoman to a salesman in the United States and thence to a hugely successful businessman in Egypt, running a stationery importing firm.’

Penelope Lively; Books: Out of Place: State of Confusion; The Guardian (London, UK); Oct 9, 1999.

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