Etymograph

English

epicene

Epicene comes from Late Latin epicoenos ‘noun applicable to either males or females’, from Ancient Greek ἐπίκοινος ‘common to many people, things, etc.’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm ‘beside, by, near, with’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱóm‘beside, by, near, with’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱomyósreconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*koňňósreconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκοινός‘common’
  5. Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEἐπίκοινοςepíkoinos‘common to many people, things, etc.’
  6. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEepicoenos‘noun applicable to either males or females’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500epicene
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1620same form

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱóm‘beside, by, near, with’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ḱomyósreconstructed
  3. Proto-Hellenicc. 2200–1600 BCE*koňňósreconstructed
  4. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEκοινός‘common’
  5. Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEἐπίκοινοςepíkoinos‘common to many people, things, etc.’
  6. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEepicoenos‘noun applicable to either males or females’
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500epicene
  8. Englishearliest quotation 1620same form

Earliest quotation: 1620, Newes from the New World Discover’d in the Moon. A Masque, [: “Onely one Iſland they have, is call'd the Iſle…”

The story

From Late Middle English epicene, epicen, epicin, epcyn, episcen, epycen, epycene, epycyn, ypsen (‘(grammar) having only one form for masculine and feminine gender, common’), from Late Latin epicoenos, epicoenus (‘of a noun: applicable to either males or females’), Latin epicoenon (‘noun applicable to either males or females; grammatical gender of such nouns’), from Ancient Greek ἐπίκοινος (epíkoinos, “common to many people, things, etc.; promiscuous, sluttish”) (compare γένος ἐπίκοινον (génos epíkoinon, “common gender”)), from ἐπι- (epi-, prefix meaning ‘on, upon; on top of; all over’) + κοινός (koinós, “common; general, public”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm (‘beside, by, near, with’) + *-yós (suffix forming adjectives from noun stems)).

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm ‘beside, by, near, with’

among, consider, competition, gain, conference, counter, concrete, consistent, con, comply, cum, commodity, cue, compulsory, hind, contra, compel, concierge, likeness, connotation, kata, condiment, limbed, condescend, 31 more

Today it means

adj Of or relating to a class of Greek and Latin nouns that may refer to males or females but have a fixed grammatical gender (feminine, masculine, neuter, etc.).

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ḱóm / epicene

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