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Ojalá
Words
Certain: The standard etymology in the RAE dictionary and in Corriente; no serious doubt.Home & town · Everyday

albañil

bricklayer, builder; a worker who builds with brick, stone and cementobrero que construye con ladrillo, piedra y cemento

Comes from Arabic

البَنَّاء

al-bannāʾ

“the builder”«el constructor»

In Andalusi Arabic: البَنِّي al-bannī

Arabic today says

بَنَّاء

bannāʾ

And it still does

Root

ب ن ي

b-n-y

The article

Spanish kept the Arabic article al- glued to the word.

The story

Arabic double nn gave ñ, like Latin nn in annu > año. The final -il comes from the Andalusi form al-banní.La doble nn árabe dio ñ, como la nn latina de annu > año. La -il final viene de la forma andalusí al-banní.

In a sentence

El albañil terminó la pared en un día.

The bricklayer finished the wall in a day.

أَنْهَى البَنَّاءُ الجِدَارَ فِي يَوْمٍ وَاحِد.

More words from the root ب ن ي

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