hippopotamus (English)

Where does "hippopotamus" come from?

The English word 'hippopotamus' entered the language from Latin and New Latin forms, which trace back to the Ancient Greek 'ἱπποπόταμος'[1][2]. This Greek compound literally translates to 'river horse', combining 'ἵππος'[2] meaning 'horse'[1] and 'ποταμός'[2] meaning 'river'[1]. In early English, it briefly displaced the native term 'nicor'[1].

Open questions

The irregular sound changes in the Ancient Greek word for horse remain unexplained, leading to suggestions that it was borrowed from another IndoEuropean language. [5]
The exact derivation of the Ancient Greek word for river from ProtoIndoEuropean roots is uncertain, with multiple competing theories proposed by linguists. [6]
The traditional derivation of the ProtoIndoEuropean word for horse from an adjective meaning swift is disputed by scholars who suggest possible borrowing from North Caucasian or ProtoYeniseian. [7]

Full etymology tree

hippopotamus (English), 'A semi-aquatic, herbivorous, African hoofed mammal of the family Hippopotamidae.'
- borrowed hippopotamus (Latin), 'a hippopotamus'
  - borrowed ἱπποπόταμος (hippopótamos) (Ancient Greek), 'hippopotamus'
    - compound ἵππος (híppos) (Ancient Greek), 'a horse, (feminine) a mare'
      - inherited *íkkʷos (Proto-Hellenic), 'horse'
        inherited *h₁éḱwos (Proto-Indo-European), 'stallion, horse'
    - compound ποταμός (potamós) (Ancient Greek), 'river, stream'

Ancestors

*peth₂- (Proto-Indo-European)
*HéHḱus (Proto-Indo-European)
hippopotamus (Latin)
ἱπποπόταμος (Ancient Greek)

Descendants and derived words

common hippopotamus (English)
dependapotamus (English)
hippo (English)
hippopotamic (English)
hippopotamoid (English)
Hippopotamus Defence (English)
hippopotamuslike (English)
pygmy hippopotamus (English)
woolly hippopotamus (English)

Sources

Updated October 2026

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