Where does “publicain” come from?

publicain (French) comes from Latin pūblicānus, from Latin pūblicum, from Latin pūblicus, from Old Latin poplicus, from Latin pōpulus, from Proto-Italic poplos — army.

publicain (French): publican public contractors, who often supplied the Roman legions and military; managed the collection of port duties; oversaw public building projects; served as tax collectors, farming the taxes of the Roman provinces, and bidding on contracts for the collection of various types of taxes

Definitions

  1. publican public contractors, who often supplied the Roman legions and military; managed the collection of port duties; oversaw public building projects; served as tax collectors, farming the taxes of the Roman provinces, and bidding on contracts for the collection of various types of taxes

Ancestry of “publicain”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinpūblicānuspublic revenue
2Latinpūblicumstate property
3Latinpūblicusof or belonging to the people, state, or community
4Old LatinpoplicusAlternative form of publicus
5Latinpōpulusa people, nation
6Proto-Italicpoplosarmy
Every word from Proto-Italic poplos →Every word from Latin pōpulus →Every word from Old Latin poplicus →