Where does “nègre” come from?

nègre (French) comes from Spanish negro, from Latin nigrum, from Latin niger, from Proto-Indo-European nókʷts, from Proto-Indo-European negʷ- — bare, naked.

nègre (French): negro; ghostwriter; friend, buddy

Definitions

  1. negro; ghostwriter; friend, buddy

Ancestry of “nègre”, step by step

nègre traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Spanish negro

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Spanishnegroblack; a black person; ghost writer
2Latinnigrummasculine accusative singular of niger; neuter...
3Latinnigerwan, shining black; bad; evil; ill-omened
4Proto-Indo-Europeannókʷtsnight
5Proto-Indo-Europeannegʷ-bare, naked

via Occitan negre

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Occitannegreblack
2Old Occitannegreblack
3LatinNigerA Roman agnomen, or "nickname"

via Portuguese negro

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Portuguesenegroblack; black; negro; black in colour
2Old Portuguesenegroblack

Words derived from “nègre”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European negʷ- →Every word from Proto-Indo-European nókʷts →Every word from Latin niger →