Where does “change” come from?
Change comes from Middle English chaungen, from Old French changier, from Latin cambire meaning to barter or exchange, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European kamp-.
change (English): To become something different; To make something...
Definitions
- To become something different; To make something...
Ancestry of “change”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | chaungen | to change; to modify |
| 2 | Anglo-Norman | chaunger | Late Anglo-Norman spelling of changier |
| 3 | Old French | changier | to change; to make a change |
| 4 | Late Latin | cambiare | — |
| 5 | Latin | cambiō | to exchange, barter; change |
| 6 | Latin | cambium | A change; cambium |
| 7 | Gaulish | cambion | change |
| 8 | Proto-Celtic | kambos | curved; twisted, crooked |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | kamp- | to bend; crooked; crooked |