Where does “Bellefontaine” come from?
Bellefontaine (French) comes from French beau, from Middle French beau, from Old French beau, from Latin bellus, from Latin villus, from Latin vellus, from Proto-Indo-European h₂welh₁- — to rule; strong, powerful; hair; wool.
Ancestry of “Bellefontaine”, step by step
Bellefontaine traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via French beau
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | beau | handsome, fine, attractive; nice; fair |
| 2 | Middle French | beau | beautiful; handsome; attractive |
| 3 | Old French | beau | Alternative form of biau; fair |
| 4 | Latin | bellus | beautiful, pretty, handsome; pleasant, agreeable,... |
| 5 | Latin | villus | hair, tuft of hair, shaggy hair |
| 6 | Latin | vellus | The wool shorn from a sheep; fleece; wool; The... |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂welh₁- | to rule; strong, powerful; hair; wool |
via French Fontaine
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | Fontaine | village in Aisne |
| 2 | Middle French | fontaine | fountain |
| 3 | Old French | fontaine | fountain |
| 4 | Latin | fontāna | spring, fountain, source |
| 5 | Latin | fontānus | bearing a relation to the spring or source |
| 6 | Latin | fons | a spring, a fountain; fresh water, spring water;... |
| 7 | Latin | fontis | genitive singular of fōns |