Where does “Beefeater” come from?

Beefeater (English) comes from English beef, from Middle English bef, from Old French buef, from Latin bōs, from Ancient Greek βοῦς, from Latin corvus, from Proto-Italic korwos, from Proto-Indo-European ḱorh₂wós — army.

Beefeater (English): A Yeoman Warder

Definitions

  1. A Yeoman Warder

Ancestry of “Beefeater”, step by step

Beefeater traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via English beef

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishbeefThe meat from a cow, bull, or other bovine; A...
2Middle Englishbefbeef; cow flesh or meat; A bovine or its carcass
3Old Frenchbuefcow
4Latinbōshead of cattle (cow, bull, steer, or ox)
5Ancient Greekβοῦςcow, ox, cattle; shield: ὃτι ἐκ βοείων ἐστι...
6LatincorvusA raven; a bird associated with prophecy and...
7Proto-Italickorwos
8Proto-Indo-Europeanḱorh₂wós
9Proto-Indo-Europeanḱer-to grow, to make grow, to nourish; to plait,...
10Proto-Indo-Europeankr̥-to turn, to bend
11Proto-Indo-Europeanker-army

via English eater

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglisheaterOne who eats; An eating apple; One who performs...
2English-erA person or thing that does an action indicated...
3Middle English-eragentive suffix; agent noun suffix
4Old French-erAlternative form of -ier, verbal suffix;...
5Latin-ārefirst conjugation
6Proto-Italic-āōForms primarily denominative verbs
7Proto-Indo-European-eh₂yétiCreates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive...
8Proto-Indo-European-yétiCreates intransitive, often deponent,...
9Proto-Indo-Europeanyé-
10Chichewaiyehe, she
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ker-