Where does “mallemolen” come from?
mallemolen (Dutch) comes from Dutch mal, from Old French mole, from Latin modulus, from Latin -ulus, from Proto-Italic -olos, from Proto-Italic -elos, from Proto-Indo-European -e-lós, from Proto-Indo-European -lós — Forms agent nouns from verbal roots.
mallemolen (Dutch): carousel, merry-go-round; madhouse; vortex
Definitions
- carousel, merry-go-round; madhouse; vortex
Ancestry of “mallemolen”, step by step
mallemolen traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Dutch mal
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dutch | mal | mold, cast; foolish, crazy, lacking common sense |
| 2 | Old French | mole | — |
| 3 | Latin | modulus | a small measure or interval; a module; a water... |
| 4 | Latin | -ulus | Used to form a diminutive of a noun, indicating... |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | -olos | — |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | -elos | Forms desubstantival and deadjectival diminutive nouns |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -e-lós | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -lós | Forms agent nouns from verbal roots |
via Dutch molen
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dutch | molen | mill |
| 2 | Middle Dutch | mōlen | mill |
| 3 | Old Dutch | mulin | — |
| 4 | Latin | molīna | — |
| 5 | Latin | mola | millstone; mill; ground meal |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | melh₂- | to grind, to crush |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | mel- | soft; tender; weak; to deceive; to rub |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | mey- | to strengthen; to bind; to change, exchange |