Manilas

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of sturdy, brown, or yellow paper often used for envelopes and document folders
2. A palm leaf used to make various handicrafts and traditional items, primarily in the Philippines
3. A material associated with Manila, reflecting its cultural and practical uses in stationery and crafts

Etymology: "Manilas" is simply the plural of "manila," a word that takes its name from the city of Manila, the capital of the Philippines. The material itself comes from the leaves of a palm native to the islands, and the name records where the fiber was traded and shipped rather than describing the plant. Over time, the place name became the label for the fiber and the goods made from it. The plural form refers to multiple pieces of this material, or to the handicrafts and traditional items woven or made from it. Because the word was built directly from a proper noun, its story is a straightforward one: a city's name passed to the commodity that moved through its ports.