Where does “espion” come from?
espion (Middle French) comes from Old French espion, from Frankish *spehō, from Frankish spehōn, from Proto-Germanic spehōną, from Proto-Indo-European speḱ- — to see, to look, to observe.
Ancestry of “espion”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Old French | espion | spy |
| 2 | Frankish | *spehō | — |
| 3 | Frankish | spehōn | to spy, watch; to peer, to look, to spy |
| 4 | Proto-Germanic | spehōną | to peer, look, spy |
| 5 | Proto-Indo-European | speḱ- | to see, to look, to observe |