Where does “nightmare” come from?
Nightmare comes from Middle English nightmare, from Old English nihtmare, from Proto-West Germanic nahtmarā, combining naht (night) and a root related to Proto-Indo-European mor- or mer- (to harm or frighten).
nightmare (English): A demon or monster, thought to plague people...
Definitions
- A demon or monster, thought to plague people...
Ancestry of “nightmare”, step by step
nightmare traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via English night
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | night | The period between sunset and sunrise, when a... |
| 2 | Middle English | nyght | Alternative form of nighte; Alternative form of... |
| 3 | Middle English | nighte | night |
| 4 | Old English | nyht | Alternative form of niht |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | naht | night |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | nahts | night |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | nókʷts | night |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | negʷ- | bare, naked |
via English Maré
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Maré | An adult female horse |
| 2 | Middle English | mare | A horse member of the species |
| 3 | Old English | mare | mare (evil spirit thought to torment people in their sleep) |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | marā | evil spirit, nightmare |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | marǭ | evil spirit; succubus; incubus; nightmare |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | mor- | to blacken, to dirty; dirt spot; to rub, pound,... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | mer- | to die; to disappear; sea, lake, wetland |