Etymology Explorer › Breton

Where does “kouign-amann” come from?

kouign-amann (Breton) comes from Breton amann, from German Ammann, from German Amtmann, from German amt, from Middle High German ambahte, from Old High German ambahti, from Proto-Germanic ambahtaz, from Gaulish ambaxtos — to drive.

kouign-amann (Breton): A traditional Breton butter cake

Definitions

  1. A traditional Breton butter cake

Ancestry of “kouign-amann”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Bretonamannbutter
2GermanAmmann—
3GermanAmtmann—
4Germanamt—
5Middle High Germanambahte—
6Old High Germanambahtiposition, office
7Proto-Germanicambahtazservant
8Gaulishambaxtosvassal, high-ranking servant
9Proto-Celticambaxtosservant
10Proto-Indo-Europeanh₂eǵ-to drive
Every word from Proto-Indo-European h₂eǵ- →