English
gaol
Gaol comes from Middle English gayole ‘jail, prison’, from Late Latin caveola ‘little cage’, and ultimately from Proto-Italic *kawos.
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kawosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcavus‘hollow’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CE*caveusreconstructed
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcavea‘cavity, coop, cage’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcaveola‘little cage’diminutive of cavea
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500gabiola
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gayole‘jail, prison’by way of Old French gaiole
- Englishearliest quotation 1963gaol
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*kawosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcavus‘hollow’
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CE*caveusreconstructed
- Latin, derivedc. 75 BCE–200 CEcavea‘cavity, coop, cage’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEcaveola‘little cage’diminutive of cavea
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500gabiola
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500gayole‘jail, prison’by way of Old French gaiole
- Englishearliest quotation 1963gaol
Earliest quotation: 1963, Margery Allingham, Miss Thyrza’s Chair: “There's every Staffordshire crime-piece ever made in this cabinet,…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *ḱewh₁- ‘to swell’
church, kirk, hound, cyst, cumulus, cajole, 37 more
through Proto-Indo-European *ḱowh₁ós
through Proto-Italic *kawos
through Latin cavus ‘hollow’
cave, cavity, excavation, excavate, cavil, 15 more
through Latin cavea ‘cavity, coop, cage’
through Late Latin caveola ‘little cage’
through Middle English gayole ‘jail, prison’
Today it means
noun Dated spelling of jail.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Italic *kawos / gaol