Where does “niger” come from?
niger (Serbo-Croatian) comes from English nigger, from English neger, from French nègre, from Spanish negro, from Latin nigrum, from Latin niger, from Proto-Indo-European nókʷts, from Proto-Indo-European negʷ- — bare, naked.
niger (Serbo-Croatian): nigger
Definitions
- nigger
Ancestry of “niger”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | nigger | A black person; a person of black African... |
| 2 | English | neger | Synonym of nigger |
| 3 | French | nègre | negro; ghostwriter; friend, buddy |
| 4 | Spanish | negro | black; a black person; ghost writer |
| 5 | Latin | nigrum | masculine accusative singular of niger; neuter... |
| 6 | Latin | niger | wan, shining black; bad; evil; ill-omened |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | nókʷts | night |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | negʷ- | bare, naked |