Where does “plumage” come from?
Plumage comes from Old French plumage, derived from Old French plume meaning feather, which traces to Latin pluma and ultimately to Proto-Indo-European roots related to hair or down.
plumage (English): Layer or collection of feathers covering a bird’s...
Definitions
- Layer or collection of feathers covering a bird’s...
Ancestry of “plumage”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | plumage | — |
| 2 | Old French | plume | feather; plume |
| 3 | Latin | plūma | feather, plume |
| 4 | Proto-Italic | plouksmā | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | plúnksneh₂ | feather |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | plú-n-k- | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | plewk- | to fly, flow, run; to splash, to flap with hands |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | plew- | to fly, flow, run |