Where does “Nīlus” come from?
Nīlus (Latin) comes from Ancient Greek νεῖλος, from Arabic نِيل, from Persian نیل, from Arabic نيل, from Middle Persian 𐭭𐭩𐭫, from Sanskrit नील, from Proto-Indo-European neyH- — to lead.
Ancestry of “Nīlus”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Ancient Greek | νεῖλος | river valley |
| 2 | Arabic | نِيل | indigo |
| 3 | Persian | نیل | indigo |
| 4 | Arabic | نيل | verbal noun of نَالَ; indigo; to colour indigo |
| 5 | Middle Persian | 𐭭𐭩𐭫 | indigo |
| 6 | Sanskrit | नील | of a dark color |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | neyH- | to lead |