Talk:ketchup

Etymology / More general

 * title added. —Nils von Barth (nbarth) (talk) 05:46, 30 January 2011 (UTC)

Etymology: the wikipedia article has some material on the etymology of ketchup. JillianE 13:57, 28 October 2005 (UTC)

Didn't ketchup used to be a more general word for sauces? I think I've heard of banana ketchup and walnut ketchup. (I'll have to do some research over the weekend). JillianE 13:57, 28 October 2005 (UTC)

Yes, why do we have to say 'tomato' ketchup if ketchup means 'tomato sauce'? Paul

I don't know how "banana ketchup" and "walnut ketchup" come about. But I am a Cantonese, and I know the original of the word ketchup is a direct translation of sound from Cantonese pronunciation of the word "茄汁", in which the first character is tomato, the second is sauce.


 * To reply:
 * Thanks for the note re: ’pedia – I’ve added a link
 * Yes, ketchup is also used more generally for sauces, especially in the past, and did not originally refer to tomato sauce – rather it originally referred to fish sauce, hence why the phrase “tomato ketchup” is used. I’ve (earlier) added pictures of other ketchups.
 * Regarding the Cantonese etymology: this is incorrect, and is not accepted by authorities. As noted above, the word did not originally refer to a tomato sauce, but rather a fish sauce; tomatoes were only added in the west long after the word was established.
 * —Nils von Barth (nbarth) (talk) 05:46, 30 January 2011 (UTC)