Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Mont Blanc” come from?

Mont Blanc (English) comes from French mont Blanc, from French blanc, from Middle French blanc, from Old French blanc, from Late Latin blancus, from Frankish blank, from Proto-Germanic *blank, from Proto-Germanic blankaz — to shine, white; to shine, burn, scorch.

Ancestry of “Mont Blanc”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchmont BlancMont Blanc
2Frenchblancwhite color; blank, unused; blank, without...
3Middle Frenchblancwhite
4Old Frenchblancwhite
5Late Latinblancuswhite
6Frankishblankbright; gleaming, white, blinding; bright,...
7Proto-Germanic*blank—
8Proto-Germanicblankazbright, shining, white, gleaming, blinding
9Proto-Indo-Europeanbhleg-to shine, white; to shine, burn, scorch
Every word from Proto-Indo-European bhleg- →