Where does “onager” come from?
onager (Middle French) comes from Old French onager, from Late Latin onager, from Latin onager, from Ancient Greek ὄναγρος, from Ancient Greek Ἄγριος, from Proto-Indo-European h₂éǵr̥yos, from Proto-Indo-European h₂éǵros — field, pasturage.
Ancestry of “onager”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Old French | onager | onager |
| 2 | Late Latin | onager | large siege engine; wild ass; onager; onager |
| 3 | Latin | onager | wild ass; onager; onager |
| 4 | Ancient Greek | ὄναγρος | onager, wild ass; kind of catapult |
| 5 | Ancient Greek | Ἄγριος | living in the open fields |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂éǵr̥yos | campestral, field attributive, of or relating to fields |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂éǵros | field, pasturage |