random (English)

Where does "random" come from?

The English adjective 'random' developed from the earlier form 'randon' and Middle English 'randoun'[1]. This was borrowed from Old French 'randon'[1][3], a noun derived from the verb 'randir', meaning 'to run' or 'gallop'[1][2]. The Old French verb traces back to a Germanic source for a run or race, either Frankish '*randiju' or Old Norse 'rend'[1], rooted in Proto-Germanic '*randijō'[1]. That noun was formed from the Proto-Germanic verb '*rinnaną', meaning 'to run', which ultimately derives from Proto-Indo-European roots referring to flowing, moving, or churning[1][5]. Over centuries, the concept of rushing along with headlong speed shifted toward unpredictable, haphazard action and modern chance.

Open questions

• It is uncertain whether the Old French verb 'randir' was borrowed specifically from Frankish '*randiju' or Old Norse 'rend'. [1] [4]
• The exact Proto-Indo-European ancestor of Proto-Germanic '*rinnaną' is disputed, with proposals including roots meaning to rise and sink, to undulate or churn, or to flow and run. [1] [4] [5]

Full etymology tree

• random (English), 'Occurring for no particular reason; haphazard, unpredictable.'
  • derived randon (English), 'Obsolete form of random.'
    • inherited randoun (Middle English), 'Force, magnitude, haste, intensity.'
      • borrowed randon (Old French), 'rapidity'
        • derived randir (Old French), 'to run; to run quickly or impetuously'
          • derived *randiju (Frankish)
            • inherited *randijō (Proto-Germanic)
              • derived *rinnaną (Proto-Germanic), 'to run, to rush (move quickly)'
          • derived rend (Old Norse)
            • inherited *randijō (Proto-Germanic)
              • derived *rinnaną (Proto-Germanic), 'to run, to rush (move quickly)'

Ancestors

• randoun (Middle English)
• randon (Old French)
• *h₃er- (Proto-Indo-European)

Cognates and doublets

• rende (Danish)

Descendants and derived words

• ռանդոմ (Armenian)
• at random (English)
• bi-random (English)
• dynamic random access memory (English)
• Fischer random chess (English)
• hypergeometric random variable (English)
• lolrandom (English)
• non-random (English)
• nonrandom (English)
• non-volatile random access memory (English)
• normal random variable (English)
• programmed random occurrence (English)

Sources

1. random (English) - Wiktionary
2. randon (Old French) - Wiktionary
3. randoun (Middle English) - Wiktionary
4. randir (Old French) - Wiktionary
5. rinnaną (Proto-Germanic) - Wiktionary

Updated October 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris