English
ovine
Ovine comes from Late Latin ovīnus, from Latin ovis ‘sheep’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- ‘to enjoy’.
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ew-‘to enjoy’root as named
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ówis‘sheep’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*owis‘sheep’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEovis‘sheep’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEovīnus
- Englishearliest quotation 1676ovine
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ew-‘to enjoy’root as named
- Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*h₂ówis‘sheep’reconstructed
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*owis‘sheep’reconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEovis‘sheep’
- Late Latinc. 200–600 CEovīnus
- Englishearliest quotation 1676ovine
Earliest quotation: 1676, Thomas Shadwell, The Virtuoso. A Comedy: “The Patient from being Maniacl, or raging mad, became…”
The story
The adjective is borrowed from Late Latin ovīnus (‘ovine’) + English -ine (suffix with the sense ‘of or relating to’ forming adjectives). Ovīnus is derived from Latin ovis (‘sheep’) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ówis (‘sheep’), possibly from *h₂ew- (‘to clothe oneself, dress; to be dressed’) in the sense of something that provides woollen clothing) + -īnus (suffix with the sense ‘of or relating to’ forming adjectives).
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- ‘to enjoy’
love, audience, egg, ear, audit, acoustic, obey, oval, audible, ey, anesthesia, avid, auspicious, ovation, aural, avarice, otolaryngology, ocarina, 65 more
through Proto-Indo-European *h₂ówis ‘sheep’
Today it means
adj Of, being, pertaining to, or resembling a sheep; also, (not comparable) of an animal: from the genus Ovis.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *h₂ew- / ovine