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da·go also Da·go

(dāgō)

n. pl. da·gos or da·goes
Offensive Slang

Used as a disparaging term for a person of Italian, Spanish, or Portuguese descent.

[Alteration of Spanish Diego, a common male given name (taken in late medieval times to be a shortening and alteration of Sant Iago, Saint James), from Old Spanish, alteration of earlier Diago, from earlier Didago, probably of pre-Roman Iberian origin and perhaps from or akin to Celtiberian Titiakos, of or belonging to the Titii, a Celtiberian tribe of the middle Ebro valIey.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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