Studying spelling bee word lists means I get to learn new words whose origins are from many countries and languages.
Extravaganza is one of my favorite words, along with influenza. I like extravaganza because of the way it’s spelled with a series of 4 A’s. Its etymology is Italian from Medieval Latin. (I like this word so much I decided to use it as my pen-name on this blog!)
The same reason goes for influenza. The spelling seems so different from other words. The etymology of influenza is also Italian from Medieval Latin.
Another word I really like is balalaika because it is easy to remember. Like extravaganza, it also contains a series of 4 A’s. Balalaika is a Russian word.
There must be something about me and words ending in an ‘a’.