Where does “ancienneté” come from?
ancienneté (Middle French) comes from Old French ancienete, from Old French ancien, from Vulgar Latin anteanus, from Latin ante, from Ancient Greek κλίσις, from Ancient Greek -σῐς, from Ancient Greek -τις, from Proto-Indo-European -tis — Derives abstract/action nouns from verb roots.
Ancestry of “ancienneté”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | ancienete | — |
| 2 | Old French | ancien | old; ancient |
| 3 | Vulgar Latin | anteanus | old, ancient |
| 4 | Latin | ante | before, in front, forwards; before; before,... |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | κλίσις | bending, inclination; a lying down; a place for... |
| 6 | Ancient Greek | -σῐς | "suffix forming nouns" |
| 7 | Ancient Greek | -τις | retained after dentals |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | -tis | Derives abstract/action nouns from verb roots |