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Etymology — The Origins of English Words

Where do words come from? Trace the origin and history of any English word, from its Latin, Greek or Old English roots through to its modern meaning. Every etymology is sourced.

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Borrowed from Cantonese 顏 /颜 (ngaan⁴).

Compound of Sanskrit बाल (bāla, “young boy, the form of Vishnu at the Tirupati temple in Andhra Pradesh.”) + Hindi -जी (-jī, “honorific”). The surname is particularly found in Andhra Pradesh.

Borrowed from French Rochefort, meaning "strong rock".

Borrowed from Mandarin 宋 (sòng).

From Arabic رفيق (rafīq), meaning "companion" or "friend."

Borrowed from Sanskrit सुरेश (sureśa).

Americanized form of Swiss German Schnaible or Schnewli.

* As a Dutch surname, from kok (“cook”). Doublet of Cook and Koch. * As a Chinese surname, spelling variant of Guo

Habitational surname of Norman origin, from the villages of Saint-Aubin-du-Thenney and Saint-Jean-du-Thenney, both in Normandy.

Borrowed from German Strasser.

English habitational surname, from an unexplained first element + Old English hryċġ (“ridge”).

Borrowed from French FEI, from French Fédération Équestre Internationale (“International Equestrian Federation”).

Ultimately from Proto-Dravidian *kōṭ-.

Borrowed from Mandarin 霍 (Huò).

From French Garnier, from the Proto-Germanic *Warinhari, composed of *warōn (“to protect”) + *hari (“army”). Compare Garner, Grenier, Gurnee.

Two possible origins: * A metronymic surname from the Old French female given name Clarice. * Habitational surname from a minor place in Sussex, probably named with Old English clǣfre (“clover”) + hryċġ (“ridge”).

Coined from "mine" (digging) plus "craft" (building), reflecting the game's core loop of mining materials and crafting them into structures.

Borrowed from Italian Augello.

From several Chinese surnames, including Mandarin 辛 (Xīn), 信 (Xìn), 新 (Xīn).

Borrowed from Japanese 小島 (Kojima) or 児島 (Kojima).

Borrowed from French Boulet.

From the Middle English personal name Thurgod, an Anglicized form of Old Norse Þorgautr, a personal name composed of the elements Þórr (“Thor”) and the demonym Gautr (“Geat”).

Ultimately of Greek origin.

Shortening of condominium.