Where does “gentlemen” come from?
gentlemen (French) comes from French gentleman, from English gentleman, from Middle English gentilman, from Middle English man, from Old English mān, from Sanskrit महादेव, from Sanskrit महा, from Sanskrit महायान — to go; to go in, enter; to ride, to travel.
gentlemen (French): plural of gentleman
Ancestry of “gentlemen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | French | gentleman | gentleman, especially an anglophone one |
| 2 | English | gentleman | A man of gentle but not noble birth,... |
| 3 | Middle English | gentilman | — |
| 4 | Middle English | man | Typically singular, indefinite pronoun: one, you;... |
| 5 | Old English | mān | bad, criminal, false; shameful act; crime;... |
| 6 | Sanskrit | महादेव | — |
| 7 | Sanskrit | महा | combining form of महत्; buffalo; great, large,... |
| 8 | Sanskrit | महायान | — |
| 9 | Sanskrit | यान | carriage, vehicle, mode of transport; moving,... |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-Aryan | yáHnam | — |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-Iranian | yáHnam | — |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | yéh₂-nom | — |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | yeh₂- | to go; to go in, enter; to ride, to travel |