English
baboon
Baboon comes from Old French baboe ‘grimace’.
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400baboeas baboue‘grimace’
- Old French, derivedc. 842–1400babouin
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500babewin
- Englishearliest quotation 1971baboon
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400baboeas baboue‘grimace’
- Old French, derivedc. 842–1400babouin
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500babewin
- Englishearliest quotation 1971baboon
Earliest quotation: 1971, Philip José Farmer, Down in the Black Gang: and others; a story collection: “Mix swallowed the comment he wanted to make, that…”
The story
According to Oxford English Dictionary, it was an imitative base *bab-, which is in turn from the (reduplicated) syllable ba, characteristic of early infantile vocalization (and expressive of the movement of the lips in speech). French babouin was also borrowed into other European languages. Confer Vulgar Latin babouinus ("a grimace"), Vulgar Latin babuinare ("to paint marginal figures in manuscripts"), Italian babbuino, babuino (‘baboon’), Dutch baviaan (‘baboon’), German Pavian (‘baboon’) For the sense of infant imitation, see English babble (‘to blather’), English babe (‘darling’), English baby (‘infant’).
Every English word from Old French baboe
Today it means
noun An Old World monkey of the genus Papio, having dog-like muzzles and large canine teeth, cheek pouches, a short tail, and naked callosities on the buttocks.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Old French baboe / baboon