Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “bowman” come from?

Bowman derives from English bow and English man, with man tracing through Middle Dutch, Old French -er, Latin -are, and Proto-Indo-European men-.

bowman (English): A man who uses a bow; an archer; The person, in a...

Definitions

  1. A man who uses a bow; an archer; The person, in a...

Ancestry of “bowman”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishMANInitialism of Metropolitan Area Network
2Middle EnglishmanTypically singular, indefinite pronoun: one, you;...
3Old Englishmānbad, criminal, false; shameful act; crime;...
4Sanskritमहादेव—
5Sanskritमहाcombining form of महत्; buffalo; great, large,...
6Sanskritमहायान—
7Sanskritयानcarriage, vehicle, mode of transport; moving,...
8Proto-Indo-AryanyáHnam—
9Proto-Indo-IranianyáHnam—
10Proto-Indo-Europeanyéh₂-nom—
11Proto-Indo-Europeanyeh₂-to go; to go in, enter; to ride, to travel
Every word from Proto-Indo-European yeh₂- →