Where does “actor” come from?
actor (Spanish) comes from Russian актёр, from French acteur, from Middle French acteur, from Latin āctor, from Latin āctus, from Latin agō, from Proto-Italic agō, from Proto-Indo-European h₂éǵeti — to drive.
actor (Spanish): actor; defendant
Ancestry of “actor”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Russian | актёр | actor, player, performer |
| 2 | French | acteur | actor |
| 3 | Middle French | acteur | — |
| 4 | Latin | āctor | — |
| 5 | Latin | āctus | — |
| 6 | Latin | agō | — |
| 7 | Proto-Italic | agō | drive; push, impel; do, act |
| 8 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂éǵeti | to be driving |
| 9 | Proto-Indo-European | h₂eǵ- | to drive |