Where does “pikestaff” come from?
pikestaff (English) comes from English Pike, from French piqué, from French piquer, from Middle French picquer, from Old French piquer, from Vulgar Latin piccare, from Frankish pikkōn, from Proto-Germanic pikōną — "low-pitch humming noise".
pikestaff (English): The wooden shaft of a pike; A staff with a spike...
Definitions
- The wooden shaft of a pike; A staff with a spike...
Ancestry of “pikestaff”, step by step
pikestaff traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via English Pike
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | Pike | A member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity |
| 2 | French | piqué | past participle of piquer; dive; two fabrics... |
| 3 | French | piquer | to prick; to sting; to nick, pinch, steal |
| 4 | Middle French | picquer | to sting |
| 5 | Old French | piquer | to pierce with the tip of a sword |
| 6 | Vulgar Latin | piccare | to puncture; to sting, strike; to pierce |
| 7 | Frankish | pikkōn | to peck, strike |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | pikōną | — |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | bew- | "low-pitch humming noise" |
via English staff
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | staff | A long, straight, thick wooden rod or stick,... |
| 2 | Middle English | staf | A staff, rod or pole; a relatively long, narrow,... |
| 3 | Old English | stæf | staff; letter, written character |
| 4 | Proto-West Germanic | stab | staff; letter |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | stabaz | staff, stick |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | stebʰ- | to stand still; to harden |