Etymograph

English

porter

Porter comes from Late Latin portātor ‘carrier’, and goes back to Latin portō ‘to carry’.

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEportōas portāre, past participle‘to carry’
  2. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEportātor‘carrier’
  3. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400portour
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500porter‘gatekeeper, doorkeeper’
  5. Englishearliest quotation c. 1602same form

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Earlier history uncertain.

Lineage

  1. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEportōas portāre, past participle‘to carry’
  2. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEportātor‘carrier’
  3. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400portour
  4. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500porter‘gatekeeper, doorkeeper’
  5. Englishearliest quotation c. 1602same form

Earliest quotation: c. 1602, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida: “Achilles! a drayman, a porter, a very camel.”

Equivalent to port ‘to carry’ + -er

Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘to fare, cross’

Proto-Indo-European *pértus ‘crossing’

Proto-Italic *portus ‘harbour’

Latin portus ‘harbour, port’

Old English port ‘a port, haven’

English port

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *per- ‘to lead, cross over, pass’

first, before, far, price, press, per, practice, private, fear, pre, primary, further, prime, prize, prior, appreciate, pregnant, practical, opportunity, afford, precious, praise, ford, privilege, parade, par, interpretation, fare, forth, pardon, primitive, prix, ferry, pirate, pragmatic, privy, prism, proton, depreciation, portable, 143 more

through Proto-Italic *portā ‘crossing’

porch, portal, porta, portico, 21 more

through Proto-Italic *portāō ‘to carry’

sport, rapporteur, 14 more

through Latin portō ‘to carry’

support, report, transport, importance, export, import, rapport, deport, comport, 14 more

Another origin of porter

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*per-‘to pass through/over’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-European, derivedc. 4500–2500 BCE*pr̥téh₂reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*portā‘gate’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEporta‘gate’
  5. Late Latinc. 200–600 CEportarius‘gatekeeper’
  6. Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400portour
  7. Middle Englishc. 1150–1500porter‘gatekeeper, doorkeeper’
  8. Englishtodaysame form

Today it means

noun A person who carries luggage and related objects; (historically) one who carried luggage or did manual labour in the transloading of cargo.

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

Etymograph / Latin portō / porter

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