Where does “barn owl” come from?
barn owl (English) comes from English barn, from Middle English barn, from Old English bearn, from Old English bereærn, from Old English bere, from Old English tūn, from Proto-West Germanic tūn, from Proto-Germanic tūną — smoke; mist, haze.
barn owl (English): An owl of the species Tyto alba, often having a white face and commonly found in barns and other farm buildings
Definitions
- An owl of the species Tyto alba, often having a white face and commonly found in barns and other farm buildings
Ancestry of “barn owl”, step by step
barn owl traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English barn
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | barn | A building, often found on a farm, used for... |
| 2 | Middle English | barn | A member of one's immediate offspring or progeny;... |
| 3 | Old English | bearn | child; first/third-person singular preterite of... |
| 4 | Old English | bereærn | barn, granary |
| 5 | Old English | bere | barley; first-person singular present indicative... |
| 6 | Old English | tūn | enclosure, yard; place; dwelling |
| 7 | Proto-West Germanic | tūn | fence |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | tūną | fence; enclosure |
| 9 | Gaulish | dunum | fort; hill, hillfort |
| 10 | Proto-Celtic | dūnom | stronghold, rampart |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰewh₂- | smoke; mist, haze |