Where does “serpette” come from?
serpette (French) comes from French serpe, from Old French serpe, from Vulgar Latin sarpa, from Latin sarpo, from Proto-Indo-European serp- — to creep, crawl.
serpette (French): billhook
Ancestry of “serpette”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | French | serpe | billhook, pruning hook, sickle |
| 2 | Old French | serpe | serpent, snake |
| 3 | Vulgar Latin | sarpa | — |
| 4 | Latin | sarpo | I prune |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | serp- | to creep, crawl |