Where does “brunette” come from?
Brunette comes from French brunette, diminutive of French brunet, from French brun meaning dark brown, traced back through Old French brun and Frankish brūn to Proto-Germanic brūnaz and Proto-Indo-European roots.
brunette (English): of a dark color or tone; having brown or black...
Definitions
- of a dark color or tone; having brown or black...
Ancestry of “brunette”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | French | brunette | — |
| 2 | French | brun | brown; brown-haired person |
| 3 | Italian | Bruno | — |
| 4 | Medieval Latin | brunus | brown, brunet |
| 5 | Frankish | brūn | brown, dark, shiny |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | *brūn | — |
| 7 | Proto-Germanic | brūnaz | brown |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | bʰerH- | to pierce; to strike; brown |