Etymology of the French word noir
the French word
noirderived from the Latin word
niger (black; black, dark; unlucky)
derived from the Proto-Indo-European root
*nekʷ-t-derived from the Latin word
ater (black, dark; dark-colored; deadly, terrible, grisly)
Date
The earliest known usage of noir in French dates from the 11th century.
Derivations in French
noirâtre,
noiraud,
noirceur,
noire,
noirement,
gros-noir,
pied-noirCognates
Dutch
neger, English
negro, French
nègre, German
Neger, Icelandic
negri, Italian
negro, Lithuanian
negras, Russian
нeгp, Spanish
negro, Swedish
neger
