sə̇ˈrä(ˌ)kō noun
also sci·roc·co shə̇-
( -s )
Etymology: Italian sirocco, scirocco, from Arabic sharq east
1.
a. : a hot oppressive dust-laden wind from the Libyan deserts that blows on the northern Mediterranean coast chiefly in Italy, Malta, and Sicily
b. : a warm moist oppressive southeast wind in the same regions
2. : a hot or warm wind of cyclonic origin (as the harmattan of the west coast of Africa, the hot winds of Kansas and Texas, the khamsin of Egypt) blowing from an arid or heated region