Where does “nair” come from?
nair (Romansch) comes from Latin Niger, from Proto-Indo-European negʷ- — bare, naked.
nair (Romansch): black
Definitions
- black
Ancestry of “nair”, step by step
nair traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.
via Latin Niger
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | Niger | A Roman agnomen, or "nickname" |
| 2 | Proto-Indo-European | negʷ- | bare, naked |
via Malayalam നായർ
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Malayalam | നായർ | Nair, a major subcaste of Kshatriyas in Kerala, India |