Where does “Gentlemen” come from?
Gentlemen (German) comes from English gentlemen, from English gentlemen's, from English gentlemen's room, from English waiting room, from English waiting, from English wait, from Middle English waiten, from Anglo-Norman waiter — lively, awake; strong.
Ancestry of “Gentlemen”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | gentlemen | plural of gentleman; Alternative form of... |
| 2 | English | gentlemen's | possessive case of gentlemen: belonging to some... |
| 3 | English | gentlemen's room | Any room intended for use by men, "particularly:" |
| 4 | English | waiting room | A room in some public place for people to wait |
| 5 | English | waiting | present participle of wait; Watching; The act of... |
| 6 | English | wait | To delay movement or action until the arrival or... |
| 7 | Middle English | waiten | to look at, behold |
| 8 | Anglo-Norman | waiter | — |
| 9 | Frankish | wahtwēn | to guard, protect; to keep watch |
| 10 | Frankish | wahtu | watch, guard; watch, guard duty, watchtower;... |
| 11 | Proto-Germanic | wahtwō | watch, vigil |
| 12 | Proto-Germanic | wakaną | to wake, be awake, arise |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | weǵ- | lively, awake; strong |