Where does “biftek” come from?
biftek (Turkish) comes from Ottoman Turkish بیفتك, from French bifteck, from English beefsteak, from English beef, from Middle English bef, from Old French buef, from Latin bōs, from Ancient Greek βοῦς — army.
biftek (Turkish): beefsteak
Ancestry of “biftek”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|
| 1 | Ottoman Turkish | بیفتك | — |
| 2 | French | bifteck | beefsteak |
| 3 | English | beefsteak | steak cut from beef cattle; Ellipsis of beefsteak... |
| 4 | English | beef | The meat from a cow, bull, or other bovine; A... |
| 5 | Middle English | bef | beef; cow flesh or meat; A bovine or its carcass |
| 6 | Old French | buef | cow |
| 7 | Latin | bōs | — |
| 8 | Ancient Greek | βοῦς | cow, ox, cattle; shield: ὃτι ἐκ βοείων ἐστι... |
| 9 | Latin | corvus | A raven; a bird associated with prophecy and... |
| 10 | Proto-Italic | korwos | — |
| 11 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱorh₂wós | — |
| 12 | Proto-Indo-European | ḱer- | to grow, to make grow, to nourish; to plait,... |
| 13 | Proto-Indo-European | kr̥- | to turn, to bend |
| 14 | Proto-Indo-European | ker- | army |