Where does “jay” come from?

jay (Middle English) comes from Old French jai, from Latin gaius, from Proto-Italic *Gāwjos, from Proto-Indo-European geh₂w- — to rejoice.

jay (Middle English): jay bird

Definitions

  1. jay bird

Ancestry of “jay”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchjaijay
2Latingaiusjaybird
3Proto-Italic*Gāwjos—
4Proto-Indo-Europeangeh₂w-to rejoice

Words derived from “jay”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European geh₂w- →