Where does “lucifer” come from?
lucifer (Dutch) comes from English lucifer, from Latin lucifer, from Latin -fer, from Latin ferō, from Proto-Italic ferō, from Proto-Indo-European bʰéreti, from Proto-Indo-European bʰēr- — shiny, light brown.
lucifer (Dutch): match
Ancestry of “lucifer”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | lucifer | A self-igniting match, ie. one which could be lit... |
| 2 | Latin | lucifer | light-bringing |
| 3 | Latin | -fer | -bearing, -carrying, -bringing |
| 4 | Latin | ferō | — |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | ferō | carry, bear |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰéreti | to be carrying |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰēr- | shiny, light brown |