Where does “mayfly” come from?
mayfly (English) comes from English fly, from Middle English flien, from Old English flēogan, from Old English -ende, from Proto-West Germanic *-andī, from Proto-Germanic -andz, from Proto-Indo-European -ónts, from Hungarian önt — sound, voice.
mayfly (English): Any of the many fragile insects of the order...
Definitions
- Any of the many fragile insects of the order...
Ancestry of “mayfly”, step by step
mayfly traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English fly
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | fly | Any insect of the order Diptera; characterized by... |
| 2 | Middle English | flien | To fly; to travel in the air; To move in the sky;... |
| 3 | Old English | flēogan | to fly |
| 4 | Old English | -ende | equivalent of English -ing; suffix for present... |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | *-andī | — |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -andz | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -ónts | Derives nouns denoting body parts |
| 8 | Hungarian | önt | to pour; to cast; accusative singular of ön |
| 9 | Hungarian | ön | you |
| 10 | Hungarian | ön- | self- |
| 11 | Turkish | ön | front |
| 12 | Ottoman Turkish | اوك | voice (of human or animal); sound |
| 13 | Proto-Turkic | ǖn | sound, voice |
via English May
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | May | The fifth month of the Gregorian calendar, following April and preceding June |
| 2 | French | mai | May |
| 3 | Old French | mai | — |
| 4 | Latin | Māius | “month”}} of May |
| 5 | Latin | Maia | nominative feminine singular of Maius; nominative... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | μαῖα | midwife; foster mother, nurse; good mother, dame |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | μήτηρ | mother; source or origin |
| 8 | Proto-Hellenic | mā́tēr | mother |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | méh₂tēr | mother |