English
talon
Talon comes from Old French talon ‘heel, spur’, from Latin tālus ‘ankle’, and ultimately from Proto-Italic *tākslos.
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*tākslosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtālus‘ankle’
- Proto-Romanceprehistoric (reconstructed)*tālōnisreconstructed
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500tālōnem
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400talon‘heel, spur’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500talon
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588talon
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*tākslosreconstructed
- Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEtālus‘ankle’
- Proto-Romanceprehistoric (reconstructed)*tālōnisreconstructed
- Medieval Latinc. 600–1500tālōnem
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400talon‘heel, spur’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500talon
- Englishearliest quotation c. 1587–1588talon
Earliest quotation: c. 1587–1588, Christopher Marlowe, Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […]: “and now doth gaſtly death With greedie talients gripe…”
Linked words
through Proto-Indo-European *teh₂g- ‘to touch’
contact, taste, integrity, integrate, contingent, tangible, attain, tame, taxis, contiguous, tangent, tactile, tact, taxonomy, contagion, contaminate, tama, ataxia, thwack, 30 more
through Latin tālus ‘ankle’
Today it means
noun A sharp, hooked claw of a bird of prey or other predatory animal.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Proto-Italic *tākslos / talon