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
Definitions
- A laptop computer
Ancestry of “laptop”, step by step
laptop traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English lap
| 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 | stone |
via English top
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | top | The highest or uppermost part of something; A... |
| 2 | Middle English | top | The summit or top of something, especially a... |
| 3 | Old English | topp | top, summit (of something) |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | *topp | top, summit, crest |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | tuppaz | tuft, plait; top, summit |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | dumb- | tail, rod, staff, pole, penis; tail, rod, staff,... |