Etymograph

English

founder

Founder comes from Middle English foundour, from Old French fondeur, from Latin fundātor, from fundō ‘to found’, from fundus ‘bottom’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰudʰmḗn‘bottom’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰundʰós‘bottom’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*fundos‘bottom’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfundus‘bottom’
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEfundō‘to found, establish’
  6. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEfundātor‘founder’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400fondeur‘founder’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500foundour‘founder’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1765founder

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰudʰmḗn‘bottom’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰundʰós‘bottom’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*fundos‘bottom’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfundus‘bottom’
  5. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEfundō‘to found, establish’
  6. Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEfundātor‘founder’
  7. Old Frenchc. 842–1400fondeur‘founder’
  8. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500foundour‘founder’
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1765founder

Earliest quotation: 1765, William Blackstone, Of Corporations: “As to eleemoſynary corporations, by the dotation the founder…”

Formed from found + -er

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *dʰewbʰ- ‘to sink in’

deep, dumb, dave, depth, dip, deaf, dove, dub, bottomless, typhus, doof, 20 more

through Proto-Indo-European *bʰudʰmḗn ‘bottom’

bottom, bot, bourne, 14 more

through Proto-Indo-European *bʰudʰnós

butte, 9 more

through Proto-Italic *fundos

profundity, fonds, fundus, 9 more

through Latin fundus ‘bottom, lowest point’

fund, honda, fond, 12 more

through Latin fundō ‘found, establish’

confusion, fundamental, fusion, confuse, refund, diffuse, funnel, infuse, confound, 47 more

Another origin of founder

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰewd-‘to pour’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵʰunédtireconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*hundō‘to pour out’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfundo‘pour, melt, cast’
  5. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600fondeur
  6. Englishtodayfounder

Another origin of founder

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*dʰewbʰ-‘to sink in’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰudʰmḗn‘bottom’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰudʰnósreconstructed
  4. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*bʰundʰósreconstructed
  5. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*fundosreconstructed
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEfundus‘bottom’
  7. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600fondrer‘send to the bottom’
  8. Englishtodayfounder

Today it means

noun One who founds or establishes (a company, project, organisation, state, etc.).

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

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *bʰudʰmḗn / founder

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