Where does “écu” come from?

écu (French) comes from Old French escut, from Latin scūtum, from Proto-Indo-European skei-, from Proto-Indo-European sek- — to cut, cut off, sever.

écu (French): shield; écu

Definitions

  1. shield; écu

Ancestry of “écu”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchescutshield
2Latinscūtuma type of shield: the scutum, the large oblong wooden shield carried by the Roman infantry
3Proto-Indo-Europeanskei-to cut, to divide, to separate; to cut, split; to...
4Proto-Indo-Europeansek-to cut, cut off, sever

Words derived from “écu”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European sek- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European skei- →Every word from Latin scūtum →
écu — Etymology, Origin & Word History | Etymology Explorer