Where does “ciao” come from?
ciao (French) comes from Italian ciao, from Venetian ciao, from Venetian s-ciao, from Medieval Latin sclavus, from Ancient Greek Σκλάβος, from Ancient Greek Σκλαβηνός, from Proto-Slavic slověninъ, from Proto-Slavic slovo — to cover; to incline.
ciao (French): ciao
Ancestry of “ciao”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Italian | ciao | hello!; goodbye! |
| 2 | Venetian | ciao | hello, goodbye, your servant; hullo, goodbye;... |
| 3 | Venetian | s-ciao | servant, slave; slave |
| 4 | Medieval Latin | sclavus | Slav, slave; slave |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | Σκλάβος | Slav |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | Σκλαβηνός | — |
| 7 | Proto-Slavic | slověninъ | Slav |
| 8 | Proto-Slavic | slovo | word |
| 9 | Proto-Balto-Slavic | ślawas | — |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱléwos | fame |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱlew- | to hear |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱel- | to cover; to incline |