Where does “savant” come from?
Savant comes from French savant, from French savoir "to know," from Latin sapere "to be wise," ultimately from Proto-Indo-European sap-.
savant (English): A person of learning, especially one who is...
Definitions
- A person of learning, especially one who is...
Ancestry of “savant”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | French | savant | scholarly, scientific; perfect; scholar,... |
| 2 | French | savoir | to know; to know how; to be able to, to be apt to |
| 3 | Old French | savoir | to know; to be skilled in; knowledge |
| 4 | Vulgar Latin | sapere | to know; present active infinitive of sapiō; be... |
| 5 | Latin | sapiō | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | sap- | skill; to taste; to try; to research |
Words derived from “savant”