éléphant (French)
Where does "éléphant" come from?
The French word 'éléphant' traces its origins back to the Ancient Greek 'elephas', which likely borrowed the term from an Egyptian word for the animal or its ivory. It entered Latin as 'elephantus' before passing through Old and Middle French to reach its modern form. Interestingly, an older French version of the word survived separately as 'olifant', referring specifically to a hunter's ivory horn.
Full etymology tree
- éléphant (French), 'elephant (large mammal of the family Elephantidae in the order Proboscidea)'
- inherited from elephant (Middle French), 'elephant (animal)'
- inherited from elefant (Old French)
- learned borrowing from elephantus (Latin), 'An elephant.'
- borrowed from ἐλέφας (Ancient Greek), 'elephant'
- borrowed from ꜣbw (Egyptian), 'cessation (+ m: cessation of (something))'
- derived from ꜣb (Egyptian), 'to stop, to take a break'
- derived from ꜣbb (Egyptian), 'to separate from, to move away'
- derived from ꜣb (Egyptian), 'to stop, to take a break'
- borrowed from ꜣbw (Egyptian), 'cessation (+ m: cessation of (something))'
- borrowed from ἐλέφας (Ancient Greek), 'elephant'
- learned borrowing from elephantus (Latin), 'An elephant.'
- inherited from elefant (Old French)
- inherited from elephant (Middle French), 'elephant (animal)'
Ancestors
- elephant (Middle French)
- elephantus (Latin)
- ἐλέφας (Ancient Greek)
Cognates and doublets
- olifant (French)
Descendants and derived words
- comme un éléphant dans un magasin de porcelaine (French)
- éléphant blanc (French)
- éléphant d'Afrique (French)
- éléphant d'Asie (French)
- éléphant de mer (French)
- mémoire d'éléphant (French)
- pattes d'éléphant (French)
- pied d'éléphant (French)
- elefant (Romanian)
Updated March 2026
Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris