English
alta-male
Alta-male comes from Latin altus ‘tall, lofty’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘grow, nourish’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-‘grow, nourish’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eltósreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*altosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaltusas alta‘tall, lofty’
- Englishearliest quotation 2016alta-male
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂el-‘grow, nourish’reconstructed
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂eltósreconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*altosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEaltusas alta‘tall, lofty’
- Englishearliest quotation 2016alta-male
Earliest quotation: 2016, Tom Bailey, The 20 Best Experience Gifts For Christmas 2016: “One of Coach's favourite people, the alta-male, has has…”
A compound of alta + male
Latin mās ‘male, masculine’
Latin masculus ‘masculine, a male’
Old French masle
Middle English male ‘a man’
English male
The story
Coined by Coach Magazine and Idea Motel in 2016.
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- ‘grow, nourish’
as, all, else, adult, el, element, ultimate, alien, ultra, outrage, ellen, ou, alternate, qualification, alumni, alter, abolish, adolescent, alpine, alias, alum, alimony, alibi, alp, retaliate, ulterior, proletariat, parallax, altruism, aad, coalesce, foetal, althea, withal, 64 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂eltós
old, elder, auld, eld, 14 more
through Latin altus ‘tall, lofty’
altitude, alt, altar, alto, haughty, haut, exalt, altimeter, 13 more
Today it means
noun A man who values personal realization over more conventional measures of success.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂el- / alta-male