Where does “cuckoo-dove” come from?
cuckoo-dove (English) comes from English dove, from Middle English douve, from Old English dūfe, from Proto-Germanic dūbǭ, from Proto-Indo-European dʰewbʰ-, from Proto-Indo-European dʰewh₂- — smoke; mist, haze.
cuckoo-dove (English): Any of several species of bird in the genera...
Definitions
- Any of several species of bird in the genera...
Ancestry of “cuckoo-dove”, step by step
cuckoo-dove traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English dove
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | dove | A pigeon, especially one smaller in size and white-colored; a bird (often arbitrarily called either a pigeon or a dove or both) of more than three hundred species of the family Columbidae |
| 2 | Middle English | douve | A dove, pigeon, or similar bird; An affectionate... |
| 3 | Old English | dūfe | dove, pigeon |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | dūbǭ | dove, pigeon |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰewbʰ- | deep |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰewh₂- | smoke; mist, haze |