Etymograph

English

orc

Orc may come from Italian orco ‘man-eating giant’.

  1. Italianc. 1300–presentorco‘man-eating giant’uncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1656orc

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Earlier history uncertain.

Lineage

  1. Italianc. 1300–presentorco‘man-eating giant’uncertain
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1656orc

Earliest quotation: 1656, Samuel Holland, Don Zara del Fogo: “Who at one stroke didst pare away three heads…”

The story

Probably from Italian orco (‘man-eating giant’); later revived by J. Tolkien, partly after Old English orc, which he took to mean "demon". Both are from Latin Orcus (‘the underworld; the god Pluto’). Etymology 2 sense 2 is a semantic loan from Ukrainian орк (ork, “evil monstrous humanoid creature; orc”) or Russian орк (ork), both from English orc and possibly under the influence of Russian у́рка (úrka, “criminal”, prison slang).

Every English word from Italian orco

Today it means

noun A mythical evil monstrous humanoid creature, usually quite aggressive and often green.

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

Etymograph / Italian orco / orc

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