Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Breton” come from?

Breton (English) comes from French Breton, from Old French Breton, from Latin britto, from Latin Brittania, from Ancient Greek Βρεττανία, from Ancient Greek -ῐ́ᾱ, from Proto-Indo-European -íh₂, from Proto-Indo-European -h₂ — Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...

Breton (English): A person from Brittany; The Celtic language of...

Definitions

  1. A person from Brittany; The Celtic language of...

Ancestry of “Breton”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1FrenchBretonBreton
2Old FrenchBretonBreton
3Latinbritto—
4LatinBrittaniaBritain
5Ancient GreekΒρεττανία—
6Ancient Greek-ῐ́ᾱ{{l|en|-ia}}; "suffix forming abstract feminine...
7Proto-Indo-European-íh₂—
8Proto-Indo-European-h₂Creates collective nouns, which refer to groups...
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -h₂ →