Where does “naïf” come from?

naïf (Old French) comes from Latin nātīvus, from Latin nātus, from Latin gnātus, from Proto-Italic gnātos, from Proto-Indo-European ǵn̥h₁tós, from Proto-Indo-European ǵenh₁- — to produce, to beget, to give birth.

Ancestry of “naïf”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinnātīvuscreated, made
2Latinnātusborn, arisen, made
3Latingnātus
4Proto-Italicgnātosborn
5Proto-Indo-Europeanǵn̥h₁tósbegotten, produced
6Proto-Indo-Europeanǵenh₁-to produce, to beget, to give birth

Words derived from “naïf

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵenh₁-Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵn̥h₁tósEvery word from Proto-Italic gnātos