Where does “bonhomme” come from?
bonhomme (French) comes from French homme, from Middle French homme, from Old French home, from Latin homō, from Old Latin hemō, from Proto-Italic hemō, from Proto-Indo-European ǵʰmṓ, from Proto-Indo-European dʰéǵʰōm.
bonhomme (French): fellow, chap; scarecrow
Definitions
- fellow, chap; scarecrow
Ancestry of “bonhomme”, step by step
bonhomme traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via French homme
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | homme | man; man, Man |
| 2 | Middle French | homme | man |
| 3 | Old French | home | man; vassal; manservant |
| 4 | Latin | homō | human, person, man |
| 5 | Old Latin | hemō | — |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | hemō | man |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | ǵʰmṓ | earthling |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | dʰéǵʰōm | earth |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -ōm | emphatic suffix or postpositive particle |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -mi | — |
via French bon
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | French | bon | good; right, correct; sexy, hot, smoking hot |
| 2 | Middle French | bon | good |
| 3 | Old French | bon | good |
| 4 | Latin | bonus | good, honest, brave, noble, kind, pleasant;... |
| 5 | Old Latin | duenos | Alternative form of duonus |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | dwenos | good |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | dew- | to show favour, revere; to fail, to lag, to be... |