Where does “primitive” come from?
Primitive comes from Old French primitif, derived from Latin primitivus, formed with the Latin suffix -ivus from Proto-Indo-European per- meaning first or before.
primitive (English): An original or primary word; a word not derived...
Definitions
- An original or primary word; a word not derived...
Ancestry of “primitive”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | primitif | — |
| 2 | Latin | prīmitīvus | primitive (first of its kind), original |
| 3 | Latin | primitus | originally, at first, from the first, from/at... |
| 4 | Latin | prīmus | — |
| 5 | Latin | prīsmos | — |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | priisemos | foremost, first |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |
Words derived from “primitive”
- primitivism
- primitively
- primitiveness
- primitivist
- primitivity
- nonprimitive
- primitivistic
- primitivization
- unprimitive
- semiprimitive
- neoprimitive
- neoprimitivism
- primitivize
- imprimitive
- multiprimitive
- quasiprimitive
- neoprimitivist
- preprimitive
- ultraprimitive
- primitivistically
- anarchoprimitivism
- anarcho-primitivist
- anarcho-primitivism
- biquasiprimitive