Where does “buoy” come from?
buoy (American English) comes from Middle English boy, from Middle Dutch boeye, from Old French boie, from Latin boia, from Ancient Greek βοείη, from Ancient Greek βοῦς, from Latin corvus, from Proto-Italic korwos — army.
buoy (American English): A float moored in water to mark a location, warn...
Definitions
- A float moored in water to mark a location, warn...
Ancestry of “buoy”, step by step
buoy traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English boy
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | boy | — |
| 2 | Middle Dutch | boeye | life buoy; float, buoy; shackle, fetter |
| 3 | Old French | boie | bond, chain; fetter, chain, clog |
| 4 | Latin | boia | fetter, collar for the neck |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | βοείη | ox hide |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | βοῦς | cow, ox, cattle; shield: ὃτι ἐκ βοείων ἐστι... |
| 7 | Latin | corvus | A raven; a bird associated with prophecy and... |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | korwos | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱorh₂wós | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱer- | to grow, to make grow, to nourish; to plait,... |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | kr̥- | to turn, to bend |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | ker- | army |