lackey: [16] By a circuitous series of steps, lackey is of Arabic origin. English borrowed it from French laquais, which originally denoted a sort of foot-soldier, and hence a ‘footman’ or ‘servant’. French in turn got it from Catalan alacay, whose source was Arabic al-qādī ‘the judge’ (the Spanish version alcalde ‘magistrate’ was acquired by English in the 17th century).
