Where does “étincelle” come from?
étincelle (French) comes from Old French estencele, from Vulgar Latin stincilla, from Latin scintilla, from Proto-Indo-European ski-nto-, from Proto-Indo-European skey-, from Proto-Indo-European sek- — to cut, cut off, sever.
étincelle (French): spark
Ancestry of “étincelle”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old French | estencele | a spark |
| 2 | Vulgar Latin | stincilla | — |
| 3 | Latin | scintilla | spark; glimmer |
| 4 | Proto-Indo-European | ski-nto- | — |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | skey- | to split, to dissect |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | sek- | to cut, cut off, sever |
Words derived from “étincelle”