Where does “prominent” come from?
prominent (French) comes from Latin prōminēns, from Latin prōmineō, from Latin prō-, from Proto-Italic *pro-, from Proto-Indo-European pro-, from Proto-Indo-European por-, from Proto-Indo-European per-, from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós — passed , crossed.
Ancestry of “prominent”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | prōminēns | prominent, jutting out, projecting |
| 2 | Latin | prōmineō | to stand or jut out; to project, overhang; to be prominent |
| 3 | Latin | prō- | forward direction, forward movement |
| 4 | Proto-Italic | *pro- | pro- see the Latin entry for further meanings |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | pro- | toward, forward |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | por- | to give birth; forward, through; going, passage |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | per- | before, in front; first; to go through |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | pr̥tós | passed , crossed |