Where does “harquebuse” come from?
harquebuse (French) comes from Middle Low German hakebusse, from Middle Low German busse, from Old Saxon *buhsa, from Proto-Germanic *buhsā, from Latin buxis, from Latin pyxis, from Ancient Greek πυξίς, from Ancient Greek πύξος — box tree; boxwood.
Ancestry of “harquebuse”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle Low German | hakebusse | — |
| 2 | Middle Low German | busse | gun |
| 3 | Old Saxon | *buhsa | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | *buhsā | — |
| 5 | Latin | buxis | a box |
| 6 | Latin | pyxis | A small box, for holding medicines or toiletries |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | πυξίς | box made of boxwood, box; tablet made of boxwood;... |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | πύξος | box tree; boxwood |