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Ojalá
Words
Certain: The standard etymology in the RAE dictionary and in Corriente; no serious doubt.Expressions · Common

algarabía

hubbub, confused shouting of many people; gibberishgriterío confuso de varias personas; lenguaje que no se entiende

Comes from Arabic

العَرَبِيَّة

al-ʿarabiyya

“the Arabic language”«la lengua árabe»

Arabic today says

ضَجِيج

ḍajīj

Root

ع ر ب

ʿ-r-b

The article

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

The story

At first it simply meant "the Arabic language"; to those who didn't understand it, it sounded like an incomprehensible racket, and so it ended up meaning "uproar".Primero significó simplemente «la lengua árabe»; para quien no la entendía sonaba a jaleo incomprensible, y así acabó siendo «griterío».

In a sentence

Desde la calle se oía la algarabía de la fiesta.

From the street you could hear the hubbub of the party.

كَانَ ضَجِيجُ الحَفْلَةِ يُسْمَعُ مِنَ الشَّارِع.

More words from the root ع ر ب

More from “Expressions”