Where does “blackjack” come from?
blackjack (English) comes from English black, from Middle English blake, from Old English blāc, from Old English -ian, from Old English -ōjan, from Proto-West Germanic -ōn, from Proto-Germanic -ōną, from Proto-Indo-European -eh₂yéti — he, she.
blackjack (English): A common gambling card game in casinos, where the...
Definitions
- A common gambling card game in casinos, where the...
Ancestry of “blackjack”, step by step
blackjack traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English black
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | black | Absorbing all light and reflecting none; dark and... |
| 2 | Middle English | blake | Alternative form of blak |
| 3 | Old English | blāc | shining, white, pale; bleak, pale, pallid, wan,... |
| 4 | Old English | -ian | Forms verbs from nouns and adjectives |
| 5 | Old English | -ōjan | — |
| 6 | Proto-West Germanic | -ōn | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | -ōną | Creates denominative verbs from nouns; Creates... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 11 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |
via English jack
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | jack | A coarse mediaeval coat of defence, especially... |
| 2 | Anglo-Norman | jacke | — |
| 3 | Middle French | jaque | — |
| 4 | Middle French | jacques | — |
| 5 | French | jacques | plural of jacque; a stupid person; a jemmy or... |
| 6 | Latin | Iacobus | Jacob; James; Saint James |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | Ἰάκωβος | — |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | Ἰακώβ | Jacob |
| 9 | Hebrew | יַעֲקֹב | Jacob |
| 10 | Hebrew | עָקֵב | heel of the foot; heel |