Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “mauve” come from?

Mauve comes from French mauve, from Latin malva, from Old French mave, from Old English mæw, from Proto-Germanic maiwaz, ultimately from Proto-Germanic maiwijaną.

mauve (English): A bright purple synthetic dye; The colour of this...

Definitions

  1. A bright purple synthetic dye; The colour of this...

Ancestry of “mauve”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchmauvemallow; mauve; mew, gull, seagull
2Middle Frenchmauve—
3Old Frenchmavegull; seagull
4Old Englishmæwgull, seagull
5Proto-Germanicmaiwiz—
6Proto-Germanicmaiwazgull, seagull
7Proto-Germanicmaiwijanąto shout, mew

Words derived from “mauve”

  • mauveine
  • mauvish
  • mauvy
  • mauvine
  • mauvely
  • mauveness
  • pseudomauveine
Every word from Proto-Germanic maiwijaną →