Where does “periwinkle” come from?
Periwinkle comes from Middle English perwinke, from Old English perfince, from Latin pervinca, from Ancient Greek πίνη, from Ancient Greek πίννα, though the ultimate origin and original meaning remain uncertain.
periwinkle (English): Any of several evergreen plants of the genus...
Definitions
- Any of several evergreen plants of the genus...
Ancestry of “periwinkle”, step by step
periwinkle traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English pinewinkle
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | pinewinkle | — |
| 2 | Old English | pīnewincle | — |
| 3 | Latin | pina | sea pen |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | πίνη | pen shell; pearl shell, pearl |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | τηρέω | to watch over, take care of, guard; to have an... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | -έω | Used to form verbs from nouns, adjectives and... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | -éyeti | Forms causative imperfective verbs from roots;... |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -yeti | Creates transitive imperfective verbs from roots |
via Middle English perwinke
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | perwinke | — |
| 2 | Old English | perfince | — |
| 3 | Latin | pervinca | periwinkle |
| 4 | Latin | vinciō | to bind, tie up, fetter |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | wi-n-k- | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | weyḱ- | to enter in; to settle; settlement |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | wey- | to wither; fade; to move, go ahead; to be strong;... |