Where does “mayhole” come from?
mayhole (English) comes from English maypole, from English May, from French mai, from Old French mai, from Latin Māius, from Latin Maia, from Ancient Greek μαῖα, from Ancient Greek μήτηρ — mother.
mayhole (English): A hole dug in the ground for dancing around on May Day, a feminist alternative to the supposedly phallic maypole
Definitions
- A hole dug in the ground for dancing around on May Day, a feminist alternative to the supposedly phallic maypole
Ancestry of “mayhole”, step by step
mayhole traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English maypole
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | maypole | A pole, garlanded with streamers held by people who dance around it to celebrate May Day |
| 2 | English | May | The fifth month of the Gregorian calendar, following April and preceding June |
| 3 | French | mai | May |
| 4 | Old French | mai | — |
| 5 | Latin | Māius | “month”}} of May |
| 6 | Latin | Maia | nominative feminine singular of Maius; nominative... |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | μαῖα | midwife; foster mother, nurse; good mother, dame |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | μήτηρ | mother; source or origin |
| 9 | Proto-Hellenic | mā́tēr | mother |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | méh₂tēr | mother |
via English hole
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | hole | A hollow place or cavity; an excavation; a pit;... |
| 2 | Middle English | hole | healthy; safe; whole, complete, full |
| 3 | Old English | hol | a hole, a hollow; calumny; slander |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | hol | hollow; hole |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | hulą | a hollow; depression; hole |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | hulaz | hollow |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱel- | to cover; to incline |