Where does “lamplighter” come from?
lamplighter (English) comes from English lamp, from Middle English laumpe, from Old French lampe, from Late Latin lampada, from Latin lampas, from Ancient Greek λαμπάς, from Ancient Greek -ᾰ́ς, from Proto-Indo-European -ónts — sound, voice.
lamplighter (English): A person employed to light streetlights at dusk...
Definitions
- A person employed to light streetlights at dusk...
Ancestry of “lamplighter”, step by step
lamplighter traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English lamp
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | lamp | A device that generates heat, light or other... |
| 2 | Middle English | laumpe | A lamp or light; A metaphorical light or fire; An... |
| 3 | Old French | lampe | lamp |
| 4 | Late Latin | lampada | Alternative form of lampas; lamp |
| 5 | Latin | lampas | lamp, lantern; torch, flambeau; firebrand |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | λαμπάς | torch, wax-light; lamp |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | -ᾰ́ς | group of |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -ónts | Derives nouns denoting body parts |
| 9 | Hungarian | önt | to pour; to cast; accusative singular of ön |
| 10 | Hungarian | ön | you |
| 11 | Hungarian | ön- | self- |
| 12 | Turkish | ön | front |
| 13 | Ottoman Turkish | اوك | voice (of human or animal); sound |
| 14 | Proto-Turkic | ǖn | sound, voice |
via English lighter
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | lighter | comparative form of light: more light; One who,... |
| 2 | English | -er | A person or thing that does an action indicated... |
| 3 | Middle English | -er | agentive suffix; agent noun suffix |
| 4 | Old French | -er | Alternative form of -ier, verbal suffix;... |
| 5 | Latin | -āre | first conjugation |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | -āō | Forms primarily denominative verbs |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -eh₂yéti | Creates iterative/ frequentative/ intensive... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -yéti | Creates intransitive, often deponent,... |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | yé- | — |
| 10 | Chichewa | iye | he, she |