Etymology Explorer › Middle French

Where does “isle” come from?

isle (Middle French) comes from Old French isle, from Vulgar Latin isula, from Latin Īnsula, from Proto-Italic enselā.

isle (Middle French): island

Definitions

  1. island

Ancestry of “isle”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchisleisland
2Vulgar Latinisula—
3LatinĪnsula—
4Proto-Italicenselā—
Every word from Proto-Italic enselā →