Where does “grotesk” come from?

grotesk (German) comes from French grotesque, from Middle French grotesque, from Italian grottesco, from Italian -esco, from Vulgar Latin -iscus, from Latin -ensis, from Latin arvum, from Latin colō — to turn.

grotesk (German): grotesque; bizarre; zany; farcical

Definitions

  1. grotesque; bizarre; zany; farcical

Ancestry of “grotesk”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchgrotesquefarcical; grotesque; grotesqueness
2Middle Frenchgrotesquefarcical; small cave; ornament
3Italiangrottescogrotesque
4Italian-escoForms adjectives that indicate relationship,...
5Vulgar Latin-iscus-ish
6Latin-ensisOf or from
7Latinarvumfield; farm land
8Latincolōto cultivate the land, till, tend, take care of a field or garden
9Latinquelō
10Proto-Italickʷelōto inhabit
11Proto-Indo-Europeankʷéleti
12Proto-Indo-Europeankʷel-to turn
Every word from Proto-Indo-European kʷel-