Where does “shanty” come from?

Shanty derives from French chantez, from Latin cantherius, though the precise semantic path from "horse" to the English word remains unclear.

shanty (English): A roughly-built hut or cabin; A rudimentary or...

Definitions

  1. A roughly-built hut or cabin; A rudimentary or...

Ancestry of “shanty”, step by step

shanty traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via French chantez

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchchantezsecond-person plural present indicative of...
2Middle Frenchchantsong
3Old Frenchchantsong
4Latincantussung, recited; sounded, blew; chanted
5Latincanerepresent active infinitive of canō; second-person...
6LatincaneoI am white, gray or hoary
7Latin-eoForms stative verbs from adjectives; dative...
8Proto-Italic-ēōForms stative verbs, indicating a state of being;...
9Proto-Italic-ējō
10Proto-Indo-European-éh₁yetiThematicization of the athematic stative verbal...
11Proto-Indo-European-yetiCreates transitive imperfective verbs from roots

via Canadian French chantier

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Canadian Frenchchantierlumberjack's headquarters; building site;...
2Latincantheriushorse; rafter; prop, shore

Words derived from “shanty

Every word from Proto-Indo-European -yetiEvery word from Latin -eoEvery word from Latin caneo