Where does “Scotch” come from?
Scotch derives from Middle English -isch, Old English -isċ, Proto-West Germanic -isk, Proto-Germanic -iskaz, and Proto-Indo-European -iskos, a suffix forming adjectives of origin or relation.
Scotch (English): The people of Scotland; Whisky distilled in...
Definitions
- The people of Scotland; Whisky distilled in...
Ancestry of “Scotch”, step by step
Scotch traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English scocchen
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | scocchen | to score, nick, cut; to cut |
| 2 | Old French | escocher | to notch |
| 3 | Old French | çoche | — |
| 4 | Vulgar Latin | *tsucca | — |
| 5 | Gaulish | tsukka | — |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | stukkaz | stick; beam; post; stump |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)tewg- | to push, to hit |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)tew- | to push, to hit |
via English Scotch tape
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Scotch tape | transparent or translucent pressure-sensitive... |