Where does “mallspeak” come from?
mallspeak (English) comes from English mall, from English pall mall, from Old French pale-maille, from Italian pallamaglio, from Italian palla, from Latin palla, from Frankish ball, from Northern Sami bállu — to fear.
mallspeak (English): A form of language, practiced by the young, in...
Definitions
- A form of language, practiced by the young, in...
Ancestry of “mallspeak”, step by step
mallspeak traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English mall
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | mall | A pedestrianised street, especially a shopping... |
| 2 | English | pall mall | A 17th-century game in which a ball was driven... |
| 3 | Old French | pale-maille | — |
| 4 | Italian | pallamaglio | pall mall |
| 5 | Italian | palla | ball; bullet, shot; testicles |
| 6 | Latin | palla | A rectangular piece of cloth worn by ladies in... |
| 7 | Frankish | ball | — |
| 8 | Northern Sami | bállu | testicle, ball |
| 9 | Northern Sami | ballát | to become scared |
| 10 | Proto-Samic | pëlājëtēk | to become scared |
| 11 | Proto-Samic | pëlëtēk | to fear |
| 12 | Proto-Uralic | pele- | to fear |
via English speak
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | speak | To communicate with one's voice, to say words out... |
| 2 | Middle English | speke | — |
| 3 | Old English | specan | Alternative form of sprecan; to speak |
| 4 | Old English | sprecan | to speak, talk |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | *sprekan | to speak |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | sprekaną | to speak, to make a noise |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | spreg- | to make a sound, speak; to make a sound, utter,... |