Where does “card” come from?
Card comes from Middle French cardinal, derived from Latin charta meaning paper, with the suffix -alis, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European roots meaning to turn or cut.
card (English): A playing card; Any game using playing cards; a...
Definitions
- A playing card; Any game using playing cards; a...
Ancestry of “card”, step by step
card traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English carde
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | carde | playing card |
| 2 | Old French | carte | Alternative form of chartre |
| 3 | Latin | charta | papyrus, paper; poem, a writing; map |
| 4 | French | cartel | a cartel |
| 5 | Italian | cartello | sign, notice, placard, signboard; signpost, road... |
| 6 | Italian | carta | paper; map; menu |
| 7 | Latin | carta | papyrus; letter etc |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | χάρτης | sheet of paper, paper; book |
| 9 | Ancient Greek | χαράσσω | to sharpen; to engrave, carve, write, draw, stamp |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵʰer- | to yearn for; to enclose; bowels, intestines |
via French carte
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | carte | card; chart; map; menu |