Where does “mayday” come from?

mayday (English) comes from French aider, from Middle French ayder, from Old French aidier, from Latin adiūtō, from Latin -tō, from Latin -tus, from Proto-Italic -tus, from Proto-Indo-European -tus — Derives action nouns from verb roots.

mayday (English): An international distress signal used by shipping...

Definitions

  1. An international distress signal used by shipping...

Ancestry of “mayday”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchaiderto help; to aid
2Middle Frenchayderto help; to aid
3Old Frenchaidierto help
4Latinadiūtōto help, serve, assist
5Latin-tōForms here
6Latin-tusForms the past participle of verbs; Forms...
7Proto-Italic-tus
8Proto-Indo-European-tusDerives action nouns from verb roots

Words derived from “mayday

Every word from Proto-Indo-European -tus
mayday — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer