Where does “cool” come from?

cool (Dutch) comes from English cool, from Middle English cool, from Middle English pek, from Middle English pike, from Old English pīc, from Proto-Germanic *pīk, from Latin pix, from Proto-Indo-European pik- — sap, juice.

cool (Dutch): cool, fashionable

Definitions

  1. cool, fashionable

Ancestry of “cool”, step by step

cool traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via English cool

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishcoolHaving a slightly low temperature; mildly or...
2Middle Englishcool
3Middle Englishpekpeak
4Middle EnglishpikeAlternative form of pyke; pike; sharp point, iron...
5Old Englishpīcpointed object, pick axe
6Proto-Germanic*pīk
7Latinpixpitch, tar
8Proto-Indo-Europeanpik-to be angry; pitch; resin
9Proto-Indo-Europeanpi-sap, juice

via Middle Dutch cole

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Dutchcole
2Old Dutchkōl
3Latincaulisdative plural of caulae; ablative plural of...
4Ancient Greekκαυλόςstem, stalk; shaft
5Proto-Indo-Europeankeh₂ulós

via Dutch Nicolaas

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1DutchNicolaas

Words derived from “cool

Every word from Proto-Indo-European pi-
cool — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer