Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “creole” come from?

Creole comes from Spanish criollo, from Portuguese crioulo, derived from Portuguese cria and criar, ultimately from Latin creare meaning "to create" or "to produce."

creole (English): A lect formed from two or more languages which...

Definitions

  1. A lect formed from two or more languages which...

Ancestry of “creole”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Spanishcriollocreole; unmixed European-descended Latin...
2Portuguesecrioulocriollo; a slave born at the house of his master;...
3Portuguesecriayoung; offspring; kid; young'un; someone who is...
4Portuguesecriarto create, to put into existence; to invent; to...
5Old Portuguesecriarto raise
6Latincreō—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanḱer-to grow, to make grow, to nourish; to plait,...
8Proto-Indo-Europeankr̥-to turn, to bend
9Proto-Indo-Europeanker-army

Words derived from “creole”

  • creolization
  • Krio
  • Kriol
  • creolisation
  • decreolization
  • Kreyol
  • creolist
  • creolistics
  • creoloid
  • creolize
  • postcreole
  • recreolization
  • creolise
  • noncreole
  • decreolize
  • creolistic
  • anticreole
  • creology
  • creologenic
  • recreolize
  • krio
  • krioli
  • Krio
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ker- →