shamiana means A large, ornate tent or pavilion; a marquee. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 87 out of 100.
Why “shamiana” is a great word
SHAMIANA — [Noun] A large, ornate tent or pavilion used for ceremonial or social gatherings. From Hindustani (Hindi शामियाना (śāmiyānā) / Urdu شامیانہ (śāmiyāna)), borrowed from Classical Persian شامیانه (šāmiyāna, "a marquee, canopy"). Unlike a "marquee," a general utilitarian big-top, or a "pavilion," a permanent garden folly, a shamiana is an impermanent palace of ceremony. It is the saffron hue of late sun filtering through dyed canvas, the murmur of a wedding feast contained by walls of brocade, and the soft sigh of a thousand guests beneath its billowing ceiling—a magnificent, fabric-borne assertion of celebration in the face of the ephemeral.
Etymology
Borrowed from Bengali শামিয়ানা (śamiẏana) and Hindustani (Hindi शामियाना (śāmiyānā) / Urdu شامیانہ (śāmiyāna)), from Classical Persian شامیانه (šāmiyāna, “(India) a marquee”).
noun
- A large, ornate tent or pavilion; a marquee.“It was the rainy season and we had put up a big shamiana around the open-air pit to accommodate everyone.”