Where does “bluestem” come from?
bluestem (English) comes from English Blue, from Middle English blēwe, from Anglo-Norman blew, from Middle French bleu, from Old French blöe, from Latvian blāvus, from Old High German blāo, from Proto-West Germanic blāu — yellow, blond, grey.
bluestem (English): Any of various grasses having bluish stems,...
Definitions
- Any of various grasses having bluish stems,...
Ancestry of “bluestem”, step by step
bluestem traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Blue
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Blue | A letterman at Oxford or Cambridge; A member of... |
| 2 | Middle English | blēwe | — |
| 3 | Anglo-Norman | blew | blue |
| 4 | Middle French | bleu | blue |
| 5 | Old French | blöe | blue |
| 6 | Latvian | blāvus | accusative plural masculine form of blāvs |
| 7 | Old High German | blāo | blue, dark, grey; blue; yellow |
| 8 | Proto-West Germanic | blāu | blue |
| 9 | Proto-Germanic | blēwaz | blue; a dark bluish or grey colour, black |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰlēw- | yellow, blond, grey |
via English stem
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | stem | The stock of a family; a race or generation of... |
| 2 | English | femme | A woman, a wife; a young woman or girl; A... |
| 3 | French | femme | woman; wife; Alternative form of fem |
| 4 | Middle French | femme | wife; woman |
| 5 | Old French | fame | wife, female partner; woman |
| 6 | Latin | fēmina | woman |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | fēmanā | woman |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰeh₁-m̥n-eh₂ | who sucks; one who is sucked; one who suckles;... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰeh₁(y)- | to suckle, nurse |