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The word “tea” is one of
the few English words of Chinese origin.
It is derived from the plant’s name
as it is pronounced in South China. In
standard Chinese, it is pronounced “cha”
In South China, it is pronounced “te”
or “tay,” the vowel sound
being “e.”
There are two sayings concerning the
early spread of tea outside China.
In the 17th century, tea was introduced
into Indonesia where local people in Java
picked up the sound of “te”
or “tay” from South China.
Later, Dutch arrived there and soon learned
how to drink tea. They brought tea back
to Europe, where “te” began
to be known both on the continent and
in Britain.
The other saying is that the Portuguese
opened up sea routes to China. Some says
that the opening-up was as early as 1515.
Jesuit priests, including Father Jasper
de Cruz, were on the Portuguese ships;
and they brought the tea drinking habit
and tea word “te” or “tay”
to Portugal. By 1610, tea was shipped,
on a regular basis, to ports in France,
Holland and the Baltic coast.
This
article by Yang Tianqing and Daniel Kister.
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