From: Brian M. Scott
Message: 61506
Date: 2008-11-10
> DICCIONARIO DE LA LENGUA ESPAÑOLANot Egyptian, but Egyptian Arabic; <wad.a`a>, I think.
> http://buscon.rae.es/draeI/ says bata is "del fr. ouate".
> In turn Wiktionary http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ouate
> informs me this means "cotton wool" and is possibly from
> Egyptian (sorry, can't copy the Arabic), to lay, to place.