Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “indigo” come from?

indigo (English) comes from Dutch indigo, from Latin indicum, from Latin Indicus, from Ancient Greek ἰνδικός, from Ancient Greek Ἰνδία, from Ancient Greek Ἰνδός, from Old Persian 𐏃𐎡𐎯𐎢𐏁, from Sanskrit सिन्धु.

indigo (English): A purplish-blue colour; An indigo-colored dye...

Definitions

  1. A purplish-blue colour; An indigo-colored dye...

Ancestry of “indigo”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1DutchindigoThe colour indigo; indigo-coloured
2Latinindicumgenitive plural of index; inflection of...
3LatinIndicusof India
4Ancient Greekἰνδικός—
5Ancient GreekἸνδία—
6Ancient GreekἸνδόςan inhabitant of India or the Indian...
7Old Persian𐏃𐎡𐎯𐎢𐏁India; people living beyond the Indus
8Sanskritसिन्धुa river, stream; flood, waters; ocean, sea
9Proto-Indo-Aryansíndʰuṣriver, ocean; flow
10Proto-Indo-Iraniansíndʰušriver, stream
11Sanskritसिन्धु॑—

Words derived from “indigo”

  • indole
  • indocyanine
  • indoles
  • pindolol
  • phenylindole
  • indoleamine
  • indolyl
  • indirubin
  • indolic
  • methylindole
  • induline
  • isoindole
  • bisindolylmaleimide
  • indigobird
  • cyanopindolol
  • indin
  • indanthrene
  • indoyl
  • bisindole
  • indigoid
  • azaindole
  • indigogen
  • iodocyanopindolol
  • indolequinone
Every word from Sanskrit सिन्धु॑ →