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Origin and history of a la

a la

from French à la, literally "to the," hence "in the manner of, according to," from à, from Latin ad "to" (see ad-) + la, fem. of definite article le "the," from Latin ille (fem. illa; see le). Attested in English in French terms from fashion or cookery since late 16c.; since c. 1800 used in native formations with English words or names.

Entries linking to a la

le

French masc. definite article (including the old neuter), fem. la, from Latin ille "he, that," used in Late Latin and Medieval Latin as the definite article. Cognate with Spanish el. Latin ille "that," illa "by that way, there," replaced Old Latin olle/ollus, perhaps by analogy with iste [de Vaan]; from PIE *hol-no- "that, yonder."

a la carte

"ordered by separate items" (itemized on a bill); distinguished from a table d'hôte, indicating a meal served at a fixed, inclusive price; 1826, from French à la carte, literally "by the card" (see a la + card (n.1)).

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Trends of a la

adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

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polka
French polka, German Polka, probably from Czech polka, the dance, literally "Polish woman" (Polish Polka), fem. of Polak "a...Or it could be a merger of the two....La contredanse a vécu; le galop, rococo; la valse à deux temps, dans le troisième dessous; il n'y a plus que la polka, la...["La France Dramatique," Paris, 1841] As a verb by 1846 (polk also was tried)....
ooh
Ooh-la-la, exclamation of surprise or appreciation, is attested by 1918, from French ô là! là!...France is one fine country and we have been having a pretty good time....The people treat the Americans very well and the pretty girls,—'ooh, la, la!", as they say....
croquet
Qui est-ce qui a inventé le croquet? On l'ignore....On sait qui a imaginé l'imprimerie, qui a découvert la vapeur, et l'on ne connaît pas l'inventeur du croquet....A moins, pourtant, qu'enfant de la nature et sorti tout entier de la main du Créateur, comme Ève de la côte d'Adam, il ne...
Delaware
U.S. state, river, and native tribe, all named for the bay, which was named for Baron (commonly "Lord") De la Warr (Thomas...The family name is attested from 1201, from Delaware in Brasted, Kent, which is probably ultimately from de la werre "of...the war" (a warrior), from Old French werre/guerre "war" (see war (n.))....
chartreuse
esteemed type of liqueur, 1866, from la Grande-Chartreuse, chief monastery of the Carthusian order, which was founded 11c.... and named for the massif de la Chartreuse (Medieval Latin Carthusianus) mountain group in the French Alps, where its first...
prudery
Le propre de la pruderie, c'est de mettre d'autant plus de factionnaires que la forteresse est moins menacée....[Susanna Centlivre, "A Bold Stroke For a Wife," 1791] Some 20c. writers in English used an extended form prudibundery, in...
marmalade
Extended 17c. to any preserve or confection of pulpy consistence made from a citrus fruit....As a verb, "to spread with marmalade" by 1963....  I marmaladed a slice of toast with something of a flourish, and I don't suppose I have ever come much closer to saying...'Tra-la-la' as I did the lathering....
finicky
1825, "dainty, mincing," from finical "too particular" (1590s), which perhaps is from fine (adj.) + -ical as in cynical, ironical (OED says "ultimate derivation" from the adjective "seems probable"). But finikin (1660s) "dainty, precise in trifles" has been proposed as a source,
subtle
c. 1300 (mid-13c. as a surname), sotil, "penetrating; ingenious; refined" (of the mind); "sophisticated, intricate, abstruse" (of arguments), from Old French sotil, soutil, subtil "adept, adroit; cunning, wise; detailed; well-crafted" (12c., Modern French subtil), from Latin subt
commit
late 14c., "to give in charge, entrust," from Latin committere "to unite, connect, combine; to bring together," from com "with, together" (see com-) + mittere "to release, let go; send, throw" (see mission). The evolution of the modern range of meanings in English is not entirely

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