Kandy

Part of speech: noun, adjective

Definitions

1. A historic hill city in central Sri Lanka, known for its sacred Temple of the Tooth and the lake at its heart
2. A highland city in the middle of Sri Lanka, famous for its Buddhist temple and its scenic artificial lake
3. A old royal capital in the hill country of central Sri Lanka, home to a revered Buddhist shrine

Etymology: The root of this spelling is a Sanskrit word, "khaṇḍa," meaning "piece, fragment, candied sugar," from a verb meaning "to divide, break into pieces." The sense was of sugar broken into lumps. Sanskrit-speaking India was among the earliest places where sugar was crystallised, and the idea of a sugar piece travelled west. Via Persian "kand," the Arabic "qand" came to mean "rock candy," and Arabic speakers formed "sukkar qandī," or candied sugar. Old French took this as "sucre candi," and Middle English borrowed it as "sugre candy," which shortened to "candy." This spelling, "kandy," is a variant of that same word.