Where does “language” come from?
Language comes from Old French language, derived from Old French langue meaning "tongue," from Latin lingua, with the adjectival suffix -icus from Proto-Indo-European -kos.
language (English): A body of words, and set of methods of combining...
Definitions
- A body of words, and set of methods of combining...
Ancestry of “language”, step by step
language traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English langage
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | langage | language, tongue, speech; dialect, idiom, local... |
| 2 | Old French | language | language (style of communicating) |
| 3 | Vulgar Latin | linguaticum | language |
| 4 | Latin | lingua | tongue; a speech; an utterance or expression |
| 5 | Latin | -ula | regō + API → rēgula; tegō + API → tēgula;... |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | -tlom | Alternative form of *-trom |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -trom | Forms nouns denoting a tool or instrument |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -tḗr | Derives agent nouns from verbs, denoting someone... |
via English languet
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | languet | A tongue-shaped implement, specifically; A narrow... |
| 2 | Old French | languete | — |
via English languoid
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | languoid | A language, variety of a language, or group of... |