Where does “Tartan” come from?
Tartan (English) comes from Middle English tartaryn, from Middle French tartarin, from Old French tiret, from Old French tire, from Latin tyrius, from Latin Tyrus, from Ancient Greek τυρός, from Proto-Hellenic tūrós — to swell; to crowd; to be strong.
Tartan (English): The commander-in-chief of ancient Assyria
Definitions
- The commander-in-chief of ancient Assyria
Ancestry of “Tartan”, step by step
Tartan traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English tartaryn
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | tartaryn | rich material |
| 2 | Middle French | tartarin | expensive silk cloth from the Tartar region |
| 3 | Old French | tiret | rich cloth; kind of cloth |
| 4 | Old French | tire | rank, sequence, order, kind; row; oriental cloth... |
| 5 | Latin | tyrius | Tyrian, of Tyre |
| 6 | Latin | Tyrus | Tyre |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | τυρός | cheese |
| 8 | Proto-Hellenic | tūrós | cheese |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | tuh₂-ró-s | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | tewh₂- | to swell; to crowd; to be strong |
via Scots tartan
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Scots | tartan | — |