Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Memphis” come from?

Memphis derives from Latin Memphis, from Ancient Greek Μέμφις, from Egyptian mn-nfr, ultimately from Proto-Afroasiatic -u.

Ancestry of “Memphis”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1LatinMemphis—
2Ancient GreekΜέμφις—
3Egyptianmn-nfr—
4Egyptianmn-nfr-ppythe pyramid of Pepy
5Egyptianmnto be established, to be fixed or set; to stick,...
6Proto-Vietickaw—
7EnglishcowAn adult female of the species "Bos taurus",...
8EnglishcowponyA horse ridden by cowboys when controlling cattle
9EnglishponyA small horse; specifically, any of several small...
10Scotspowny—
11Middle Frenchpoulenetlittle foal
12Latinpullanusyoung of an animal
13LatinpullusA young animal; darling; dark-colored; dusky
14Proto-Indo-EuropeanpolHwóspale, gray

Words derived from “Memphis”

  • Memphite
Every word from Proto-Indo-European polHwós →