Where does “disco” come from?
Disco is a shortening of discotheque, which comes from French discothèque, a blend of disque (disk) and bibliothèque (library).
disco (English): Clipping of discotheque., a nightclub for...
Definitions
- Clipping of discotheque., a nightclub for...
Ancestry of “disco”, step by step
disco traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English discovery
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | discovery | Something discovered; The discovering of new... |
| 2 | English | Discover | Discover Card, a brand of credit card |
| 3 | Middle English | discoveren | — |
| 4 | Old French | descovrir | to uncover, to reveal; to discover |
| 5 | Latin | discoperīre | — |
| 6 | Latin | discooperiō | to expose, lay bare |
| 7 | Latin | cooperiō | to cover wholly or over, overwhelm, clothe |
| 8 | Latin | cōn- | Used in compounds to indicate a being or bringing together of several objects |
| 9 | Latin | cum | with, along with; at; -fold |
| 10 | Old Latin | com | Alternative form of cum |
| 11 | Proto-Italic | kom | with, along, at |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱóm | beside, near, by, with |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱe | Deictic particle, here; Post-positional... |
| 14 | Middle English | kyt | — |
| 15 | German | kitt | putty certain kinds of cement used for fixing e.g. window panes |
| 16 | Old High German | kuti | — |
| 17 | Proto-West Germanic | kwidu | gum, resin |
| 18 | Proto-Germanic | kweduz | resin |
| 19 | Proto-Indo-European | gʷet- | resin, gum; to say, speak |
| 20 | Proto-Indo-European | gū- | to bend; curve; arch; vault; to bow, bend, arch,... |
via French discothèque
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | discothèque | discotheque |
| 2 | French | -thèque | furniture where things are stored |
| 3 | Ancient Greek | θήκη | box, chest; grave, tomb; sword sheath |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | τίθημι | I put, place, set; I make, cause to be; I make |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰeh₁- | to do, put, place |