Where does “sœur” come from?
sœur (French) comes from Middle French soeur, from Old French suer, from Latin soror, from Proto-Italic swezōr, from Proto-Indo-European swésōr, from Proto-Indo-European su-h₁ésh₂-ōr, from Proto-Indo-European h₁ésh₂r̥ — blood.
sœur (French): sister; nun
Ancestry of “sœur”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Middle French | soeur | sister |
| 2 | Old French | suer | nominative singular of seror; to dry |
| 3 | Latin | soror | sister; cousin, daughter of a father's brother;... |
| 4 | Proto-Italic | swezōr | sister |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | swésōr | sister |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | su-h₁ésh₂-ōr | — |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₁ésh₂r̥ | blood |
Words derived from “sœur”