English
ichneumon
Ichneumon comes from Latin ichneumōn ‘Egyptian mongoose, Herpestes ichneumon’, from Ancient Greek ἰχνεύμων ‘tracker’, and ultimately from ἴχνος.
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἴχνοςíkhnos‘track, footstep’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEἰχνεύμωνikhneúmōn‘tracker’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEichneumōn‘Egyptian mongoose, Herpestes ichneumon’
- Englishearliest quotation 1603ichneumon
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEἴχνοςíkhnos‘track, footstep’
- Ancient Greek, derivedc. 800–300 BCEἰχνεύμωνikhneúmōn‘tracker’
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEichneumōn‘Egyptian mongoose, Herpestes ichneumon’
- Englishearliest quotation 1603ichneumon
Earliest quotation: 1603, Michel de Montaigne, The Essayes […]: “when the Ichneumon is to grapple with the Crocodile,…”
Every English word from Ancient Greek ἴχνος
Today it means
noun An Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon), found in Africa and southern Europe.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Ancient Greek ἴχνος / ichneumon