Where does “laptop” come from?
Laptop derives from English lap and top, ultimately tracing through Middle English lappe and Old English læppa to Proto-Germanic tuppaz and Proto-Indo-European roots leb-, werb-, and wer-.
laptop (English): A laptop computer
Ancestry of “laptop”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | English | lap | The loose part of a coat; the lower part of a... |
| 2 | Middle English | lappen | to wrap, fold |
| 3 | Old English | lapian | to lick, lap up, suck |
| 4 | Tagalog | lapi | joining or attaching a part to a whole; affix |
| 5 | Spanish | lápiz | pencil |
| 6 | Italian | lapis | pencil; sanguine |
| 7 | Latin | lapis | a stone; a milestone; a boundary stone |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | *lapets | — |
Words derived from “laptop”