Where does “cowboy” come from?
Cowboy derives from English cow and boy, with cow descending from Old English cū, Latin boia, and ultimately Proto-Indo-European bʰeh₂-.
cowboy (English): A man who tends free-range cattle, especially in...
Definitions
- A man who tends free-range cattle, especially in...
Ancestry of “cowboy”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | cow | An adult female of the species "Bos taurus",... |
| 2 | English | cowpony | A horse ridden by cowboys when controlling cattle |
| 3 | English | pony | A small horse; specifically, any of several small... |
| 4 | Scots | powny | — |
| 5 | Middle French | poulenet | little foal |
| 6 | Latin | pullanus | young of an animal |
| 7 | Latin | pullus | A young animal; darling; dark-colored; dusky |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | polHwós | pale, gray |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | pelH- | pale, gray |
Words derived from “cowboy”