Where does “bureaux” come from?
Bureaux comes from English bureau, from French bureau, from French bure meaning coarse woolen cloth, from Latin burra, from Latin burrus, from Ancient Greek πυρρός meaning red or reddish-brown, ultimately from Ancient Greek βοῦς meaning ox.
bureaux (English): plural of bureau
Definitions
- plural of bureau
Ancestry of “bureaux”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | bureau | An administrative unit of government; office; An... |
| 2 | French | bureau | desk; office; ticket office |
| 3 | Middle French | burel | — |
| 4 | Old French | burel | frieze; a garment made out of frieze |
| 5 | Old French | -el | Suffix that usually denotes a masculine noun |
| 6 | Latin | -ellus | Alternative form of -ulus; "forming masculine... |
| 7 | Latin | -ulus | Used to form a diminutive of a noun, indicating... |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | -olos | — |
| 9 | Proto-Italic | -elos | Forms desubstantival and deadjectival diminutive nouns |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -e-lós | — |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | -lós | Forms agent nouns from verbal roots |