Where does “motte” come from?
motte (French) comes from Old French mote, from Medieval Latin mota, from Frankish *mot, from Proto-Germanic *motta, from Proto-Germanic mutô, from Proto-Indo-European (s)mut- — dark, dirty.
motte (French): motte; clod, lump of earth; block
Definitions
- motte; clod, lump of earth; block
Ancestry of “motte”, step by step
motte traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Old French mote
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | mote | mound, embankment |
| 2 | Medieval Latin | mota | a mound, hill; nominative feminine singular of... |
| 3 | Frankish | *mot | — |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | *motta | — |
| 5 | Proto-Germanic | mutô | — |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | (s)mut- | dark, dirty |
via Old French motte
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | motte | hillock, lump, clod, turf; mound, hillock |