Where does “marketplace” come from?
Marketplace derives from Old French market, from Latin mercatus (a market or trade), built on Latin merx (goods or wares) from Proto-Indo-European pelh₂-.
marketplace (English): An open area in a town housing a public market;...
Definitions
- An open area in a town housing a public market;...
Ancestry of “marketplace”, step by step
marketplace traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English market
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | market | A gathering of people for the purchase and sale... |
| 2 | Middle English | market | A market periodic public assembly for buying or selling |
| 3 | Old Norse | markaðr | market |
| 4 | Old Saxon | markat | — |
| 5 | Latin | marcātus | — |
| 6 | Latin | mercatus | trade, traffic, buying and selling; market,... |
| 7 | Latin | -tus | Forms the past participle of verbs; Forms... |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | -tus | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -tus | Derives action nouns from verb roots |
via English place
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | place | An area; somewhere within an area; A location or... |
| 2 | Middle English | place | A place, area or spot; a part of the Earth or universe |
| 3 | Old French | place | place; location |
| 4 | Latin | platēa | broad way, street |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | πλατεῖα | feminine nominative singular of πλατύς; feminine... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | πλατύς | wide, broad; flat, level; broad-shouldered |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | pléth₂us | flat, broad |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pleth₂- | flat |