From Arabic 'al-lāzaward' (lapis lazuli), from Persian, from Lāzhward, an Afghan mining district — an Afghan place name become an English colour.
Bright blue in colour, like a cloudless sky.
From Old French 'azur,' from Medieval Latin 'azzurum,' from Arabic 'al-lāzaward' (the lapis lazuli), from Persian 'lāžavard' (lapis lazuli), ultimately from the place name Lāzhward, a district in northeastern Afghanistan where lapis lazuli has been mined for over six thousand years. The initial 'l' was lost because it was mistaken for the Arabic definite article 'al-' and stripped away. The word thus preserves the name of an Afghan mining region in every English
The word 'azure' and the word 'lazuli' (as in 'lapis lazuli') come from the same Persian word 'lāžavard' — but they entered European languages by different routes and lost different parts of the original. 'Azure' lost the initial 'l' (mistaken for the Arabic article 'al-'), while 'lazuli' kept the 'l' but lost the 'azur' portion. The two words are thus fraternal twins, each carrying