[go: up one dir, main page]
Advertisement

Origin and history of Dacian

Dacian(adj.)

1660s, "of or pertaining to the Daci, an ancient barbarian people, or their land, which was conquered by Trajan in 104 C.E. and made a Roman province, Dacia, corresponding roughly to modern Romania. From Latin Daci, from Greek Dakoi. As a noun from 1776.

also from 1660s

Entries linking to Dacian

dagger(n.)

"edged or pointed weapon for thrusting, shorter than a sword," late 14c. (mid-14c. in Anglo-Latin), apparently related to Old French dague "dagger," from Old Provençal or Italian daga, which are of uncertain origin; perhaps from Celtic, perhaps from Vulgar Latin *daca "Dacian knife," from the Roman province (see Dacian). The ending is possibly the faintly pejorative -ard suffix.

Attested earlier (1279) as a surname (Dagard, presumably "one who carried a dagger"). Also compare dogwood. Middle Dutch dagge, Danish daggert, German Degen also are from French. By 16c.-17c. swordsmen held it in the left hand to parry thrusts from the opponent's rapier. As "a reference mark in the form of a dagger," by 1706.

    Advertisement

    More to explore

    Roman holiday
    Pilgrimage": But where his rude hut by the Danube lay There were his young barbarians all at play, There was their Dacian...
    ampersand
    1797, contraction of and per se and, meaning "(the character) '&' by itself is 'and' " (a hybrid phrase, partly in Latin, partly in English). An earlier form of it was colloquial ampassy (1706). The distinction is to avoid confusion with & in such formations as &c., a
    prudent
    late 14c., "wise, discerning, judicious," from Old French prudent "with knowledge, deliberate" (c. 1300) and directly from Latin prudentem (nominative prudens) "knowing, skilled, sagacious, circumspect;" rarely in literal sense "foreseeing;" contraction of providens, present part
    grace
    late 12c., "God's unmerited favor, love, or help," from Old French grace "pardon, divine grace, mercy; favor, thanks; elegance, virtue" (12c., Modern French grâce), from Latin gratia "favor, esteem, regard; pleasing quality, good will, gratitude" (source of Italian grazia, Spanis
    defect
    early 15c., "want or lack of anything," especially lack of something essential to perfection or completeness, from Old French defect and directly from Latin defectus "failure, revolt, falling away," noun use of past participle of deficere "to fail, desert," from de "down, away" (
    drone
    Middle English drane, drone, "male honeybee," from Old English dran, dræn, from Proto-Germanic *dran- (source also of Middle Dutch drane; Old High German treno; German Drohne, which is from Middle Low German drone), probably imitative (compare Lithuanian tranni, Greek thronax "a
    industry
    late 15c., "cleverness, skill," from Old French industrie "activity; aptitude, experience" (14c.) or directly from Latin industria "diligence, activity, zeal," noun use of fem. of industrius "active, diligent," from early Latin indostruus "diligent," from indu "in, within" (from
    sequester
    late 14c., sequestren, transitive, "remove (something), set aside; quarantine, isolate (someone); excommunicate;" also intransitive, "separate oneself from," from Old French sequestrer (14c.) and directly from Late Latin sequestrare "to place in safekeeping," from Latin sequester
    sovereign
    late 13c., soverain, "superior, ruler, master, one who is superior to or has power over another," from Old French soverain "sovereign, lord, ruler," noun use of adjective meaning "highest, supreme, chief" (see sovereign (adj.)). Specifically by c. 1300 as "a king or queen, one wh
    average
    late 15c., "any small charge over freight cost, payable by owners of goods to the master of a ship for his care of the goods," also "financial loss incurred through damage to goods in transit," from French avarie "damage to ship," and Italian avaria. A word from 12c. Mediterranea

    Share Dacian

    Advertisement
    Trending
    Dictionary entries near Dacian
    Advertisement