Where does “natty” come from?

natty (Jamaican Creole) comes from English knotty, from Middle English knotti, from Middle English knotte, from Old English cnotta, from Proto-Germanic knuttô, from Proto-Indo-European gnod- — to bind.

natty (Jamaican Creole): dreadlocked, knotty, nappy

Definitions

  1. dreadlocked, knotty, nappy

Ancestry of “natty”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishknottyFull of knots; Complicated or tricky; complex,...
2Middle EnglishknottiAlternative form of knotty
3Middle Englishknotteknot, tie; binding, method of attachment, link;...
4Old Englishcnottaknot
5Proto-Germanicknuttôa knot
6Proto-Indo-Europeangnod-to bind
Every word from Proto-Indo-European gnod- →Every word from Proto-Germanic knuttô →Every word from Old English cnotta →