Revised 2003

nubianoun

Etymology
Meaning & use
Pronunciation
Forms
Frequency

Quotations

Hide all quotations

Factsheet

What does the noun nubia mean?

There is one meaning in OED's entry for the noun nubia. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.

This word is used in U.S. English.

See meaning & use

How common is the noun nubia?

Fewer than 0.01occurrences per million words in modern written English

1850	0.0068
1860	0.0062
1870	0.0073
1880	0.0071
1890	0.0069
1900	0.0065
1910	0.0055
1920	0.005
1930	0.0047
1940	0.0032
1950	0.0026
1960	0.0025
1970	0.0027
1980	0.0029
1990	0.0029
2000	0.003
2010	0.0031

See frequency

How is the noun nubia pronounced?

British English

/ˈnjuːbɪə/

NYOO-bee-uh

U.S. English

/ˈn(j)ubiə/

NYOO-bee-uh

See pronunciation

Where does the noun nubia come from?

Earliest known use

1850s

The earliest known use of the noun nubia is in the 1850s.

OED's earliest evidence for nubia is from 1852, in a letter by S. Clappe.

nubia is a borrowing from Spanish.

Etymons: Spanish nube.

See etymology

Nearby entries

nubbin, n.1692–
nubbing, n.1673–
nubbin stretcher, n.1964–
nubble, n.1776–
nubble, v.1673–1877
nubbled, adj.1925–
nubbling, n.1825–
nubbly, adj.1829–
nubby, adj.1864–
nubecula, n.1677–
nubia, n.1852–
Nubian, n. & adj.?a1425–
Nubian giraffe, n.1881–
Nubian goat, n.1879–
Nubian woodpecker, n.1815–
nubiferous, adj.1656–
nubiform, adj.1873
nubilate, adj.?1518–
nubilate, v.a1697–1801
nubilation, n.1874–
nubile, n.1977–

Browse more nearby entries

Etymology

Thank you for visiting Oxford English Dictionary

To continue reading, please sign in below or purchase a subscription. After purchasing, please sign in below to access the content.

View our subscription options

Personal account

Access or purchase personal subscriptions
Get our newsletter
Save searches
Set display preferences

Institutional access

Recommend to your librarian

Institutional account management

Meaning & use

Thank you for visiting Oxford English Dictionary

To continue reading, please sign in below or purchase a subscription. After purchasing, please sign in below to access the content.

View our subscription options

Personal account

Access or purchase personal subscriptions
Get our newsletter
Save searches
Set display preferences

Institutional access

Recommend to your librarian

Institutional account management

Pronunciation

Thank you for visiting Oxford English Dictionary

To continue reading, please sign in below or purchase a subscription. After purchasing, please sign in below to access the content.

View our subscription options

Personal account

Access or purchase personal subscriptions
Get our newsletter
Save searches
Set display preferences

Institutional access

Recommend to your librarian

Institutional account management

Forms

Thank you for visiting Oxford English Dictionary

To continue reading, please sign in below or purchase a subscription. After purchasing, please sign in below to access the content.

View our subscription options

Personal account

Access or purchase personal subscriptions
Get our newsletter
Save searches
Set display preferences

Institutional access

Recommend to your librarian

Institutional account management

Frequency

Thank you for visiting Oxford English Dictionary

To continue reading, please sign in below or purchase a subscription. After purchasing, please sign in below to access the content.

View our subscription options

Personal account

Access or purchase personal subscriptions
Get our newsletter
Save searches
Set display preferences

Institutional access

Recommend to your librarian

Institutional account management

Entry history for nubia, n.

nubia, n. was revised in December 2003.

nubia, n. was last modified in July 2023.

oed.com is a living text, updated every three months. Modifications may include:

further revisions to definitions, pronunciation, etymology, headwords, variant spellings, quotations, and dates;
new senses, phrases, and quotations.

Revisions and additions of this kind were last incorporated into nubia, n. in July 2023.

Earlier versions of this entry were published in:

OED First Edition (1907)

Find out more

OED Second Edition (1989)

Find out more
View nubia in OED Second Edition

Cite

Chicago

Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. “,” , .

Copied to clipboard

MLA9

“” Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, , .

Copied to clipboard

Select format to download citation

Contribute

Please submit your feedback for nubia, n.

Please include your email address if you are happy to be contacted about your
feedback. OUP will not use this email address for any other purpose.

Section (required)

Feedback (required)

Citation details

Factsheet for nubia, n.

Browse entry

Nearby entries

nubbin, n.1692–
nubbing, n.1673–
nubbin stretcher, n.1964–
nubble, n.1776–
nubble, v.1673–1877
nubbled, adj.1925–
nubbling, n.1825–
nubbly, adj.1829–
nubby, adj.1864–
nubecula, n.1677–
nubia, n.1852–
Nubian, n. & adj.?a1425–
Nubian giraffe, n.1881–
Nubian goat, n.1879–
Nubian woodpecker, n.1815–
nubiferous, adj.1656–
nubiform, adj.1873
nubilate, adj.?1518–
nubilate, v.a1697–1801
nubilation, n.1874–
nubile, n.1977–

Browse more nearby entries