Where does “benign” come from?
Benign comes from Middle English benygne, from Old French benigne, from Latin benignus, meaning well-born or kindly, ultimately derived from Proto-Indo-European ǵenh₁- meaning to produce or beget.
benign (English): Kind; gentle; mild; mild and favorable; Not...
Definitions
- Kind; gentle; mild; mild and favorable; Not...
Ancestry of “benign”, step by step
benign traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English benigne
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | benigne | kind, gentle, mild |
| 2 | Old French | benigne | — |
| 3 | Latin | benignus | kind, good, friendly, pleasant; beneficent,... |
| 4 | Latin | genus | birth, origin, lineage, descent; kind, type,... |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | genos | lineage, origin |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵénh₁os | race, lineage |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵenh₁- | to produce, to beget, to give birth |
via French bénin
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | bénin | benign |
| 2 | Portuguese | Benim | — |
| 3 | Isekiri | ubinu | — |
| 4 | Yoruba | [[ile]] [[ibinu]] | — |