Where does “rien” come from?
rien (French) comes from Middle French rien, from Old French rien, from Latin rem, from Latin rēs, from Latin vindicatio, from Latin vindicō, from Latin vindex, from Latin dīcō — small stone, pebble; gravel, rubble.
rien (French): nothing; anything
Ancestry of “rien”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle French | rien | thing |
| 2 | Old French | rien | thing; object; being; creature; thing |
| 3 | Latin | rem | accusative singular of rēs |
| 4 | Latin | rēs | — |
| 5 | Latin | vindicatio | civil lawsuit; protection, defence; vindication;... |
| 6 | Latin | vindicō | — |
| 7 | Latin | vindex | claimant, vindicator |
| 8 | Latin | dīcō | — |
| 9 | Latin | -tiō | — |
| 10 | Latin | dissertātiō | — |
| 11 | Latin | dissertus | arranged, disposed; explained |
| 12 | Latin | disserere | second-person singular future passive indicative... |
| 13 | Latin | dis- | asunder, apart, in two; reversal, removal;... |
| 14 | Latin | calceus | shoe |
| 15 | Latin | calx | limestone; chalk; the finish line |
| 16 | Ancient Greek | χάλιξ | small stone, pebble; gravel, rubble |