Etymology Explorer › Italian

Where does “Madonna” come from?

Madonna (Italian) comes from Italian ma, from Latin magis, from Dutch magisch, from Dutch magie, from French magie, from Middle French magie, from Latin magīa, from Ancient Greek μαγεία — to be able.

Ancestry of “Madonna”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Italianmabut; Abbreviation of mamma; Indicates emotion or...
2Latinmagismore; more greatly; better
3Dutchmagischmagical, controlled or determined by supernatural...
4Dutchmagiemagic, sorcery ; hence supernatural occurrences...
5Frenchmagiemagic; A magical, surprising, fascinating feat;...
6Middle Frenchmagie—
7Latinmagīa—
8Ancient Greekμαγεία—
9Ancient GreekΜάγοςmagician, and derogatorily sorcerer, trickster,...
10Old Persian𐎶𐎦𐏁priest
11Proto-Iranianmagúš—
12Proto-Indo-Iranianmagʰúš—
13Proto-Indo-Europeanmegʰ-ú-s—
14Proto-Indo-Europeanmegʰ-to be able

Words derived from “Madonna”

  • 麥當娜
Every word from Proto-Indo-European megʰ- →