Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Maple” come from?

Maple (English) comes from Middle English mapel, from Old English mapultrēow, from Old English trēow, from Proto-West Germanic treu, from Proto-Germanic trewą, from English doru, from Ancient Greek δόρυ, from Proto-Hellenic dóru — hard, firm, strong, solid; hard, fast; tree.

Ancestry of “Maple”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishmapel—
2Old Englishmapultrēow—
3Old Englishtrēowtree, wood, timber, beam, log, stake, stick,...
4Proto-West Germanictreutree; wood
5Proto-Germanictrewątree
6EnglishdoruAlternative form of dory
7Ancient Greekδόρυwood, tree, stem; spear shaft, spear, lance,...
8Proto-Hellenicdórutree
9Proto-Indo-Europeandórutree
10Proto-Indo-Europeandrew-hard, firm, strong, solid; hard, fast; tree
Every word from Proto-Indo-European drew- →