Where does “Alex” come from?
Alex (Dutch) comes from Dutch Alexander, from Ancient Greek Ἀλέξανδρος, from Ancient Greek ἀλέξω, from Ancient Greek ἀνδρός, from Ancient Greek ἀνήρ, from Proto-Hellenic *anḗr.
Ancestry of “Alex”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Dutch | Alexander | — |
| 2 | Ancient Greek | Ἀλέξανδρος | Alexander |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | ἀλέξω | to keep off, turn aside; to guard, protect,... |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | ἀνδρός | genitive singular of ἀνήρ; man; of man |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | ἀνήρ | man; husband; human being, as opposed to a god |
| 6 | Proto-Hellenic | *anḗr | — |