Where does “jovial” come from?
Jovial comes from French jovial, from Italian gioviale, from Latin iovialis, meaning relating to Jove, formed from Latin -alis and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European peh₂-.
jovial (English): Cheerful and good-humoured; jolly, merry;...
Definitions
- Cheerful and good-humoured; jolly, merry;...
Ancestry of “jovial”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | jovial | jovial, jolly |
| 2 | Middle French | jovial | under the influence of the planet Jupiter |
| 3 | Italian | gioviale | jolly, jovial |
| 4 | Latin | ioviālis | Jovian |
| 5 | Latin | iuppiter | Jupiter god of the sky and ruler of the Roman pantheon |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | djous patēr | Jupiter |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | *djous | — |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | dyḗws | sky, heaven; sky god |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | dyéws | sky, heaven |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | dyew- | to be bright; sky, heaven |