Where does “naive” come from?
naive (Danish) comes from Danish naiv, from French naïf, from Old French naïf, from Latin nātīvus, from Latin nātus, from Latin gnātus, from Proto-Italic gnātos, from Proto-Indo-European ǵn̥h₁tós — to produce, to beget, to give birth.
naive (Danish): inflection of naiv:
## definite singular
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Definitions
- inflection of naiv:
## definite singular
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Ancestry of “naive”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Danish | naiv | naive |
| 2 | French | naïf | naive, dewy-eyed; gullible |
| 3 | Old French | naïf | — |
| 4 | Latin | nātīvus | — |
| 5 | Latin | nātus | — |
| 6 | Latin | gnātus | — |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | gnātos | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵn̥h₁tós | begotten, produced |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵenh₁- | to produce, to beget, to give birth |