Where does “singer” come from?
Singer derives from Middle English singen with the agent suffix -er, from Old English singan, which is cognate with Germanic languages and ultimately traces to Indo-European roots meaning "to produce sound."
singer (English): A person who sings, often professionally; dance...
Definitions
- A person who sings, often professionally; dance...
Ancestry of “singer”, step by step
singer traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.
via Middle English singare
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | singare | Alternative form of synger |
| 2 | Middle English | synger | A singer; A musician; A reciter of chants |
| 3 | Middle English | -ere | er |
| 4 | Old English | -ere | masculine agent suffix, originally applied only... |
| 5 | Proto-West Germanic | -ārī | -er |
| 6 | Proto-Germanic | -ārijaz | -er |
| 7 | Latin | -ārius | er |
| 8 | Proto-Italic | *-āzios | Forms relational adjectives to nouns (and rarely numerals) |
via Middle English singere
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | singere | Alternative form of synger |
via Middle English syngere
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Middle English | syngere | Alternative form of synger |