Where does “barbary” come from?
barbary (English) comes from Middle English barbarye, from Old French barbare, from Latin barbarus, from Ancient Greek βάρβαρος, from Proto-Indo-European balb-.
barbary (English): barbarian; non-Christian
Ancestry of “barbary”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle English | barbarye | barbarian, non-Christian |
| 2 | Old French | barbare | — |
| 3 | Latin | barbarus | foreign; savage; uncivilized |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | βάρβαρος | non-Greek-speaking, foreign; barbaric, brutal,... |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | balb- | — |
Words derived from “barbary”