Paisley
Where did this name come from?
What the Anglo world knows as “paisley” is actually an Asian design motif called the boteh or buta. This is the common teardrop-ish shape that’s repeated in a pattern.
Scholars differ on where the shape design originated. It might represent something in nature, or be a symbol of life.
The Anglo name comes from the city of Paisley in Scotland. It was an industrial center for textiles in the late 1800s, and was among the first Western clothing manufacturers to make patterns of the boteh, thus making it popular.
The American singer Prince released a song called “Paisley Park” in 1985. The lyrics speak of a mythical, paradisal place called Paisley Park. He named his Minneapolis-area recording studio after the song, which opened in 1987.
Why I Looked It Up
My wife was wearing a paisley shirt. I just got to wondering.