Where does “ni” come from?
ni (Italian) comes from Italian no, from English Nō, from Middle English no, from Old English nā, from Old English ne, from Old English ealles, from Old English -es, from Proto-Germanic -as — Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;...
ni (Italian): Neither yes nor no; nu
Definitions
- Neither yes nor no; nu
Ancestry of “ni”, step by step
ni traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Italian no
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian | no | no; not; Used to replace negated nouns or... |
| 2 | English | Nō | — |
| 3 | Middle English | no | no |
| 4 | Old English | nā | no |
| 5 | Old English | ne | not; or, and not; "ne... ne..." is used to mean "... |
| 6 | Old English | ealles | completely, wholly, entirely; totally,... |
| 7 | Old English | -es | possessive marker, indicating that an object... |
| 8 | Proto-Germanic | -as | used in formation of adverbs |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | -ēs | Primarily forms adjectival bahuvrīhi compounds |
| 10 | Proto-Indo-European | -ess | — |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | -os | Creates action nouns or result nouns from verbs;... |
via Italian sì
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Italian | sì | yes; so |
| 2 | Italian | bene | upper-class, posh, high; well, nicely, OK, right;... |
| 3 | Latin | bene | well; properly, exactly; agreeably, favorably |
| 4 | Latin | bonus | good, honest, brave, noble, kind, pleasant;... |
| 5 | Old Latin | duenos | Alternative form of duonus |
| 6 | Proto-Italic | dwenos | good |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | dew- | to show favour, revere; to fail, to lag, to be... |